Redemption
by Quinctia
Summary: Complete. The third installment of my Resurrection trilogy, taking place 14 years after the end of Reunion. A strange visitor to Undor-Hai tears two families apart, and draws a hermit out of his solitude. Does free will save the Planet, or destiny?
1. Part 1: Even a Downward Spiral Starts i...

_**Redemption**_

By: Quinctia

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Part 1— Even a Downward Spiral Starts in the Clouds

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**Fourteen years after **_**Reunion**_**:**

Chapter 1

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Beams of light peeked through the trees, resting finally in a speckle pattern on the floor of the forest. The crash of ocean waves against the rocky cliffs below could barely be heard on the top of Mt. Crist. Raieyana knelt at the last small monument in a row of others that were perfectly tended. She placed a few frail blossoms in front of it: lily of the valley, the first bloom of the new spring.

"I found them on the way up. They were the first I've seen since autumn, so I had to bring them here to show them to you. The trees are too thick for you to get flowers here anyway." She brushed a hand over the name carved in the stone. Jack Reno.

"If I had know this forest would grow over you...I would have cut the trees away. I hate to think you can't see light from here. Not that you are here all the time, but I like to think you can know that I'm here sometimes, remembering you. Remembering the times we shared, even though we were together for such a short time." Her voice fell to a whisper. "Reno, my love..." She did not notice the figure hiding amongst the trees, watching her. Standing, she brushed the grass from her dress, and walked back towards her house.

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She slid in, silently, and snuck up behind her husband, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"Ray!" The tall, dark-haired man pulled her close for a quick kiss.

"It's beautiful outside, Reeve," she said softly, "it's finally seasonal weather for this time of year."

"I can't believe it took close to twenty years for the Planet to recover from the effects of Meteor."

"Well, honey, Meteor _was_ a small planet, you know. More than just some big rock."

"Oh, I know that all too well." Reeve winked at her and smiled. "I was just glad to actually have winter again. This year was the first time in ages I've seen snow anywhere but Icicle Inn. We'd get frosts before, but they were always way too short. They killed the flowers for a couple months. Now, we might be able to have winter festivals."

Raieyana sighed. "It's hard to believe that remembering winter used to exist in this part of the world marks you as an 'old person.' We're still young." She looked at Reeve, and tried not to notice the places where time had left a mark on his still-handsome face. (There are a few smile lines, and he has a little gray at the temples, but...he looks well for his age.) She still found it hard to believe that her dashing, adventurous lover had not only passed forty, but had been past it for a few years. (He can't be forty-seven...)

"No," Reeve laughed. "We're not old. _I'm_ old. You're still young, vibrant, beautiful..." He let his voice trail off and slowly whispered in her ear. "...incredibly sexy." He let his gaze slide up and down her lithe, trim figure. Raieyana was thirty-eight, but looked about ten years younger, with a youthful face and a body with curves that had stayed in all the _right_ places.

She giggled and showered him with kisses. "Good thing the kids aren't around, or they'd be rolling their eyes. Besides," she continued, "I'm aging too."

"You barely show it. I'm not being flattering without cause. You look like you spent the past ten years in an airtight container."

"I think I would be a rotting corpse if I were in an airtight container. I need air to breathe."

He grinned. "Nah, you wouldn't rot, microbes need air too..." "Reeve!" she groaned. "You are impossible."

"Thank you."

She kissed him one last time. "I see you started dinner."

"Yep!"

"Good...I love you! Today has been a long day." (I wonder if he remembered... What today is.)

"Take a nap, then, Ray. This will cook for awhile. Sweet dreams." Reeve smiled as Raieyana walked to their bedroom. (She looks so pretty today. I wonder what she did with those flowers I saw earlier...)

* * *

Raieyana lay back on the queen-sized bed she shared with Reeve. Nestling her head on a soft pillow, she drew the covers over herself and began to reflect on the strong emotions that had overtaken her at the memorial. (I have never felt so upset before at...the anniversary.) Her sadness was understandable, for that day had been the fourteenth anniversary of Jack Reno's death.

Fourteen years had passed since the mako explosion had obliterated the land within a two-mile radius of Midgar. Any talk of rebuilding ended that day; the charred remains of the city looked like the aftermath of a nuclear detonation. Few people in the world knew the events leading up to the destruction that took place that day. Avalanche kept quiet, and the only thing the public knew for sure was that Shinra had been defeated, once and for all. Its old city, Midgar, was uninhabitable, while its new glory, Edinborough, had been reduced to a charred shell by the attack of a mysterious army in transports from Junon.

(That's the way we wanted the news to stay. We wanted the mystery to last. But because of that, Reno's sacrifice for us was forgotten. His sacrifice for maybe the entire Planet. After all, he destroyed any piece of Hojo's work left in Midgar. And except for a few people in Junon who remember how he and Reeve let themselves be taken hostage to save their city...no one has an inkling what happened to Jack...only that he disappeared and left his share of the company to his partner's wife. Sure, that doesn't look suspicious.)

After a few years in Junon, Reeve and Raieyana decided to move out of the city and back to Undor-Hai. Leaving the company in the trusty hands of Yorlain, they retained only stock in the company; that was, after all, the way the kids were going to have funding for any schooling they wanted. (Calling them kids is really stretching it these days) Raieyana mused, (and they would probably resent me doing so.)

The twins, Aeris and Ishmael, had reached twenty-one, and on their way to it, set the community on fire quite a few times. Aeris loved to wear her golden blond hair waist length, and she enjoyed flaunting her slender figure by wearing tight, short clothing, usually pink. She claimed it helped her fight more easily, and all she had to do was bat eyelashes over her pretty green eyes to convince her daddy that was the truth. Reeve always said that he could "never say no to Ray's eyes...even if they happen to be in the face of my strong-willed daughter."

Ishmael had grown to be as tall as his father and also looked quite a bit like him. Luckily for anyone trying to tell the difference between father and son, his dark hair contained some of his mother's fiery highlights, and his facial features were a delicate reminiscence of Professor Gast, his great-grandfather.

Brother and sister were strong as steel and rather devoted to one another, as well as their parents. In fact, they still hadn't moved out of the house, which Raieyana wasn't minding too much...yet. (I missed a bit of their childhood, and now I'm older, and I appreciate having them around while it lasts. I don't expect them to stay forever...I _hope_ they get lives of their own in the future. But it's good that they're here. Patrick would miss them so much.)

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Patrick had grown up quite a bit in his fourteen years, but that was only normal. What wasn't normal was the rate of his development. He stood five feet, eleven inches tall, weighed about 180lbs., which happened to be almost all muscle, and had the look of someone who had reached, at the very least, eighteen. Raieyana knew his development wasn't totally complete, because her younger son still retained a bit of immaturity. Most of the time, Patrick only acted like the fourteen-year-old that he was.

His looks were striking. Pale, silvery-blond hair framed bright blue eyes, which glowed not only because of the mako in his veins, but also because of the fierceness contained beneath them. Even though the actual idea was rather absurd, Raieyana often thought to herself that her son looked like a hypothetical love-child of Cloud and Sephiroth. Patrick did not question that Reeve was his father, however; luckily for Raieyana's story, his sister also was a blonde, and that helped Patrick look a little less out of place.

His actions sometimes, however, were out of place with those of his family. Even as a small child, he had been an aggressor; also, while the antics of the twins were small bits of mischief that usually brought the community amusement, the things that Patrick had done sometimes ended up in the creation of outrage. Once, after falling off a chocobo, a nine-year-old Patrick killed half the settlement's livestock in a fit of rage. Reeve paid for replacement animals and duly punished the boy, but every single time Patrick was punished for something, even by Raieyana, it raised his level of resentment for Reeve. It was almost as if he could sense the lies about his origins.

(For all his faults, he's still a good boy, smart and strong...) Patrick also had a fierce dedication to his mother, one that seemed almost Oedipal in nature. (I know he'd protect me, and he is definitely not what I had expected fourteen years ago. I wish Reno could see him and see that all we fought for, just for the fruits of a crime... Perhaps that was all we thought it was, but Jack...it was worth it. Although I wish the price of his life hadn't cost us all so much.) Raieyana's last thought was so secret, that she whispered it even inside her own mind. (_Sometimes, Reno, I wish he was your son._ And that there was some way I could have proof that what we shared was real... It's getting fuzzier day by day... Can I even remember your smile? Your eyes? Other people leave behind paper trails...nearly all proof of your existence has been destroyed. All I have are a few newspaper clippings. No pictures of us, together. Sometimes I wonder if it was a dream...and if it was...am I better off having woken up...? Or would I be better off lost in slumber—if, while I was there, I was in your arms?)

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Raieyana nestled her head back against the soft pillows, sighing quietly. She slowly drifted off to sleep, willing herself all the while to dream of flaming red hair, a tousled blue suit, a cocky grin, and eyes. Blue-green mako eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

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"Da Valentines are in da house!" yelled Ishmael, as he walked in with Kati and Sean Valentine.

Reeve turned to his son. "Keep it down, your mother is sleeping."

"Not anymore," called Raieyana from the hallway.

He shook his head and grinned in spite of himself. "Kati, Sean, where are your parents?"

"They're carrying our luggage. Zuri too." Kati exploded into giggles that seemed quite juvenile for her twenty-one years.

"What?"

"Oh it's not _that_ bad," she continued, rolling her eyes, "they asked us to come and get Rissy and Ishmael to help."

"Oh... Aeris isn't here; she went to Kalm for the day to visit Elmyra, Barret, and Marlene. She'll be back by tomorrow, though." Reeve turned to Ishmael. "Patrick's in his room though, he can help out."

Ishmael was wary. "Are you sure about that Dad?"

"Of course he's sure!" said Raieyana. "I'll go get Patrick." She turned back towards the bedrooms.

Sean was none the happier for the arrangement. "Great," he muttered. "We'd be better off doing it without any help at all."

A very loud conversation came streaming in from the hallway. "Why should I help them haul their crap? No one should bring on trip more than they can carry. It's not my job to be their slave!"

"You are fourteen years old, Patrick. A little responsibility isn't too much to ask of you. These are our guests and it would be polite to go and help them. It's not like you will be by yourself; Ishmael is going, too!"

"Ishmael? HA! I can carry twice what he can."

"Then I guess you would really be of service to them, huh?"

Patrick sulkily emerged into the living room. Raieyana, having won the argument, followed close behind him. "Which trail are they on?" he asked scornfully.

"The back one," said Kati quietly.

Patrick stalked out the door without another word.

Ishmael motioned to Kati and Sean. "C'mon, let's get back to your folks before 'the Welcome Wagon' arrives." The three walked quietly out the door.

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Reeve and Raieyana just looked at each other. "He's a teenager, that's always a difficult time," she said softly.

"The twins weren't too trying on my patience. He always seems to find a way to do it, though. The worst is when he looks at me with total disrespect."

Raieyana looked shocked. "He does?"

"All the time." Reeve gave her a wry smile. "At least he respects you. There's still hope if he listens to one of us." He pulled her closer. "Most of the time, I think we're not doing half bad."

She let her finger trace a path over his lips before bringing her own up to meet them. "We never do anything bad together," she whispered, her words heavy with innuendo. She raised an eyebrow and tilted her head back towards the bedroom. "Do you think they'll get up the trail before we'd finish?"

He slid his hand up her back and undid the catch to the neck of her dress. "Only one way to find out," he said, grinning as he led her down the hallway.

* * *

Azura Valentine set down the three suitcases she was holding and pouted. "Daddy, we should wait until they come back. I'm exhausted. Mom's exhausted. You look like you're about to turn into Chaos."

Vincent looked at his daughter and cracked one of his not-so-rare-anymore smiles. "Honey, I'm not going to turn into Chaos. If my back aches anymore, I could see the Gallian Beast coming out. Maybe."

Yuffie came around the bend in the trail, in the rear, as she tended to be. She set down the trunk she was lugging and proceeded to trip over it and land on her head. "Owww!"

Hiding a smile, Azura walked back to help her mother up. "I'm sure glad I didn't inherit your coordination, Mom."

"Eh, you're just sixteen honey, you've got some growing left to do."

"Yeah right. When you were my age, you were running around saving the world, and you met Daddy. _Then_ you had Kati. If that's growing, I'd rather wait a bit before I pop out the kids."

Yuffie flipped her hair, which was still short-styled and held back with a ninja headband. "But none of your friends ever had such a young, stylish mother. Just think, your children's grandma will be younger than some of their friends' mothers."

"I'd take the traditional cookie baker any day," teased Azura.

"What about me?" asked Vincent with a wry smile, waving his claw in the air.

"You're too interesting to complain about," she said as she hugged him.

"Hey!" Yuffie pouted.

Vincent stuck his tongue out at her.

"Boy, I'm sure sorry I loosened _you_ up!"

"Yeah, too bad I lost maturity instead of you gaining it." He chuckled. "Dammit though, I wonder if Kati forgot we needed help."

"Well, Kati might take after me, but that's why we sent Sean."

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Patrick was slightly disgusted when he had gotten halfway down the trail and still hadn't seen any trace of the Valentines. (How the heck did these people ever save the Planet? Talk about losing your touch as you age.)

Azura glanced up the mountain and she saw someone coming down towards them. (Someone tall and handsome...)

"Patrick," Vincent said quietly. Then he raised his voice in a greeting. "Hello there!"

"Hi," muttered Patrick. "Mother said you needed assistance?" He raised an eyebrow.

Yuffie and Vincent felt almost ashamed under his gaze. Maybe they had been a little too demanding of their hosts.

"Hi," said Azura shyly.

His eyes met hers. The closest in age of all the children, the two had often been playmates. Though Patrick had a tendency to bully, he always protected Azura. But it had been three years since they had seen each other. The last three summers Reeve took his family to Wutai, and Patrick had remained home as punishment for some wrong deed or another.

In those three years, he had grown from her equal to her superior. Gray eyes held blue in awe. But...Patrick actually saw them and smiled.

"Zuri!" he said, in a pleasant tone.

"Do you still go by Pat?" she asked uncertainly.

"I will if that's what you're going to call me." His smile reached his eyes for once. He turned back to her parents. "Ishmael is right behind me with Kati and Sean." His tone was cool as ice as he picked up all of the bags Azura had been handling. "Will they be enough or should I take the trunk, too?" he asked sarcastically.

"You've done more than enough," said Yuffie carefully.

"I can go with Pat, right?" Azura's eyes were sparkling like stars.

Vincent's brow furrowed, but he nodded. "Of course. I think five people can handle what's left here. Tell Ray and Reeve we'll be there as soon as humanly possible."

"Okay Daddy."

He could hear her voice, chatting away happily to her companion. Vincent sighed. "Tell me I shouldn't have this odd feeling about that child."

Yuffie was quiet. "I can't tell you not to feel how I feel myself. You know Zuri's a big girl though. And we keep forgetting Patrick's only...why he just turned fourteen."

"And he looks older than her. He could easily overpower her."

"Hush. He always could, but never did. Until we get a hint that _that_ has changed, leave them be or Zuri'll be pissed."

"But..." "The slightest inkling of a hint, Vince. Her spending time with him worries me too."

Their conversation was cut short by the arrival of Ishmael, Sean, and Kati. The luggage was divided up and worries were set aside for the time being. The two families were going to visit together like they always did.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

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"Dinner was nice," said Azura, in her quiet way.

"You're serious?" Patrick pushed with his foot, rocking the porch swing they were sitting on.

"Yes, Pat. I usually end up fending for myself. Mom is always at the pagoda, Sean and Daddy hunt monsters, and Kati spends half her time here with your brother."

"Poor baby Zuri," Patrick teased.

She sighed. "Sometimes I feel like that's the only thing I'll ever be to anyone. When our mothers were my age, they were doing something. I feel so useless."

"Times of peace breed useless people. Every year, more people up here try to stop us from training warriors. In a few years, the day will come when my mother will have nothing left to do except make us go spar with her."

A small smile crept into Azura's face, making her pretty features sparkle. "Well, I hope our parents are arranging my training in there." She gestured to the glowing living room window. "Kati and Sean came here when they were fourteen and stayed for two years. I hope it's not too late to shape me up."

"You're the youngest. If you leave, your parents will have an empty nest. I'm sure that's why they're reluctant." Patrick put a friendly arm around her. "I'd like to see you stay here, too. I've missed you."

The bright smile grew even wider, and a touch of pink spread across her cheeks. "Really?"

He nodded and met her eyes. "I'd like to see more of that, too."

Puzzled, she tilted her head a bit. "More of what?"

"That beautiful smile."

"Oh." The blush deepened and she shyly closed her eyes.

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"Zuri!" Startled, she turned towards the front door. "What is it?"

Sean smiled. "Don't look so scared. Mom and Dad just want you to come inside so they can talk to you."

Azura giggled nervously. "Okay." She turned to Patrick. "Looks like I'm going to get an answer right now," she said, taking his hand and giving it a little squeeze. "Hope I'm lucky."

"Me too," he murmured as he watched the small girl. (She's practically skipping to the door. So excited.) He suddenly noticed Sean's eyes were on him.

Sean was studying Patrick. He couldn't help but come to the conclusion that his sister ought not to stay anywhere that kid was. (I know she wants to train, but if my opinion is asked for... I will be strongly against her staying here.)

* * *

"Don't you ever get tired of not having to do anything, Kati?"

"I'm doing something right now. Watching a beautiful sunset over an ocean shoreline, with the person I'm completely in love with."

Ishmael leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "That's not what I meant. All our lives, our friends have been in awe of us because of our parents. And we've been in awe _of_ our parents. I can't help but be bitter that this generation will be without heroes."

"Don't you want to have a safe, peaceful life?"

"Of course, but—"

"No 'buts', Ish." Kati was the only person in the world who called Ishmael "Ish," being ignorant of the unspoken rule between Raieyana and Reeve. Ishmael himself despised nicknames from anyone but her.

"Why not? I'm going to work a quiet job, have kids, and die. It just seems so anticlimactic."

"I'd rather be bored with you than have excitement without...and then you end up on your mother's mountain memorial."

"I'm too strong for that. I'm the mixture of two people who saved the Planet."

"Yeah right." Kati arched an eyebrow. "What if you inherited all the weak points? That would suck."

"Yes it would. But I would never have to fight for my life unless I was mugged, so I guess I have nothing to worry about." He lay back on the blanket he had spread out across the sand.

She leaned over him and brushed a stray bit of hair off his forehead. "If anyone mugged you, I'd kick their ass."

"Tough girl." He pulled her down to him and their lips met.

A starry sky rose to look down upon the happy couple on the beach. The two of them were too young to remember the turmoil that had existed in their lives when they were children; still too optimistic to think that good times would ever come to an end. They planned to announce their engagement the next day.

* * *

"So, your mother and I have talked with Raieyana and Reeve. If you wish to train here in Undor-Hai like your sister and brother have, you may."

"Really, Daddy?" Azura hugged him. "I was wondering if I ever would get to. Then after, maybe you'll actually let me leave town by myself."

Vincent smiled. "I'm actually quite sorry about this. It took me two years to convince your mother to let you go."

"Mom!"

"Shh, honey. It's just hard for me to accept my last baby's all grown up almost. I was in denial more about my age than yours." Yuffie hugged her daughter. "But that's not all your father and I want to tell you."

"Yes." Vincent avoided eye contact with Azura; he didn't know how he could bear to start the discussion any other way. "It's about Patrick."

"I've missed him so much," Azura sighed. "He's the only other person who ever understood me."

Yuffie breathed deeply. "He's the other reason why we hesitated to let you stay here. You know he didn't visit us with the rest of his family. It's because he was punished for being violent."

"Violent?" She looked startled.

"Yes, sweetie. Not to people, as far as we know, but he's only just turned fourteen. He's nowhere near grown up yet."

"You think he'd hurt me?" Tears formed in Azura's eyes.

"I would hope that he wouldn't," said Vincent quietly.

"Don't you know he protected me when all the older kids picked on me? Kati and Sean were mean to me...they got meaner with Aeris and Ishmael...but he made them leave me alone."

"I know that," he said gently, "and that's one reason why we decided to let you train if you wished. But I'm also worried because he's been training for awhile, and you've barely started."

Yuffie patted her daughter's hand. "Don't think we're being too hard on him. You can stay, you can even be friends with him. We're just telling you to be careful."

"We'd rather you didn't spend much time alone with him. Not until you've been training a little while, at least."

"Did you tell Raieyana and Reeve about your 'concerns'?" asked Azura sarcastically.

"We discussed a few issues with them. Everything is all right. We're just being cautious parents, I promise." Vincent looked at her warmly. "So what's your decision?"

"I want to stay here, of course. But...I'd rather just start now and stay here after our vacation."

"What about your things?" Yuffie shook her head. "I know you're rather attached to them."

"They're mostly packed up. I was going to get a new room back home anyway, remember." She smiled. "I used a system. I can tell you the names of the boxes I would need here. I have a list."

"Well, that can wait. It's probably time you headed to bed."

"But Kati and Sean aren't in bed. Neither is Pat."

"That's none of your business. Besides, you're the one who wanted to start training now. You need your sleep." Yuffie kissed her on the cheek. "You can stay in the third room on the right."

Azura rolled her eyes. "Fine, Mom." She picked up her bag and started down the hallway. There was a problem, though. She accidentally went into the third room on the left.

* * *

Raieyana stepped out onto the porch and was surprised by what she saw. "Patrick, you're still out here? You've been on the swing for hours."

He calmly continued the gentle rocking motion. "Is there now something wrong with me _swinging _too, Mother?"

"Of course not," she said, as she sat down next to him. "I just thought you never liked it."

"Well, Zuri likes it."

"Is that what this is about? You know, she's going to stay with us to learn some battle techniques."

"Good, a girl like her needs to be able to protect herself."

Raieyana talked to Patrick as much as she could, but she was often taken completely aback by the things he said. "A girl like her, honey?"

"Yes." He finally got up off the swing and walked to the railing. "Small, sweet, pretty, with a nice figure. She looks weak. If she ever means to go anywhere on her own, she better know what parts hurt the worst after you hit them. Or she'll learn the hard way...that in the real world, it's hurt or be hurt."

"Where'd you pick up a depressing thought like that, Patrick?" Raieyana asked warily.

"Simple observation, Mother." He met her worried eyes. "The strong always take advantage of the weak. You should know that as well as anyone."

Startled into anger, she blurted out a defensive question. "Why do you say that?"

"You train the warriors in this place," he said, "but your response makes me wonder if there is some other way you would come to that understanding."

"No." Her voice was now firm. "It's just surprising to hear you speak in such a way sometimes. You remind me of my father."

"Grandfather Tseng, I assume."

She nodded. "Sometimes you seem much older than you are, and I don't like it. You'll be an adult soon enough Patrick. Enjoy what things you can now, for once you leave childhood, you don't return. And you and I both know that I have the utmost authority on _that_ subject."

"I'm sorry that you had to be, Mother." His tone was a flat and unemotional contrast to his words, however. "I can't help if I get contemplative in the dead of night, though."

"You can if you go to bed when you should," said Raieyana with a smile.

"True. But I don't sleep that well."

"Neither do I, honey." She stood up and dared to give him a hug, which he allowed in a rare moment of acceptance. "Can you try for me now, though?"

"I'd try anything you asked, Mother." His voice was unusually warm. "If you try the same thing yourself, that is."

They stepped inside the house. "Sure thing," she said as she entered the master bedroom. "Goodnight Patrick."

He acknowledged her with a nod before heading to his own bedroom. He opened the third door on the left and walked inside.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

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Patrick liked the dark. He always had; as a child, he loved to lurk in the shadows of the sunset. Now, he loved to walk in the untamed forest around the village and meet whatever mutants came to attack him. The number of monsters in the world were dwindling, but there were a few left over, who had become even more grotesque when exposed to the aftermath of the Midgar explosion.

Perhaps his bravery came from the steadfast gleam in his eye, similar to a cat's. However, his luminescence lasted even in the dead of night. Patrick saw remarkably well, but that was the only unusual strength that he had made known to his family. Raieyana was still uncertain just what her son was capable of, and the thought itself was quite unsettling. The question always remained, whether Patrick embraced the darkness because he could tame it or because he was part of it.

Whatever the reasoning behind it, Patrick felt at home in a dark room. He slipped into his bedroom and didn't bother with the lamp. The only reason he even had a lamp was at Raieyana's insistance. He slid off his T-shirt and stepped out of his pants, leaving only a pair of boxers. Hearing a noise outside, he stepped to the window. Suddenly, he was aware of a bit of startled movement in his bed.

"Wh-who's there?" whispered a sweet, but frightened, voice.

"It's just me, Zuri," he said softly. "What are you doing in my room?"

"_Your_ room?"

"Hang on, I'll turn on the lamp." Patrick walked across the room and turned on the oil lamp.

Azura looked around and noticed the posters of various battle techiniques, along with weapon racks. "I don't get it. Mom and Daddy told me to sleep here."

"Didn't you notice before you went to sleep?"

"I didn't turn on the lamp." She looked embarrassed. "I don't know how to work oil lamps, only electric."

He walked back over to her and sat down next to her. "Well, at least that's cleared up. Your parents probably just mixed up which room was the guest room." Inching closer to her, he placed an arm around her shoulders and mustered up the most encouraging smile he could ever make. He realized that his hand was on a bare shoulder and couldn't help but glance to see what Azura was wearing.

(A strappy silk nightgown.) Patrick could tell by the fading in the flower print that it was kind of old. (Also, it's a little obvious to me that she got this thing before she got a figure. I hope she has a robe to wear over this thing if she ever intends to leave her room.)

Azura was a little too innocent and oblivious to notice she was sitting in a bed with someone, and that they both were half-naked. "This is nice," she said cheerfully.

"What is?" Patrick was cautious.

"Well, we're sitting here and have time to ourselves, and no one would interrupt us until morning. We could talk and not have to bother with our parents wanting us to stay on the porch."

"Bother with _who_ wanting us to stay on the porch? I thought we were there because you liked the swing."

"Oh." Azura looked down. "I love the swing, but my dad told me to stay on the porch."

"You would be safe with me, even if I took you to Midgar."

"Really, Pat?" Her eyes were wide with admiration.

"Of course." He meant to ask her why her father wanted her to remain within five feet of the house, but was lured by the sparkle in Azura's eye...into another. "Has anyone ever kissed you, Zuri?"

"Kissed _me_?" She looked at him like he had suggested she go do the very thing to a chocobo. She shook her head vehemently. "No one would ever dare to do such a thing. Not to the daughter of the Lady of the Pagoda. Not to the daughter of a guy who becomes a Chaos monster when provoked."

Patrick looked deep into her eyes. "Would you like someone to, though?"

"Of course. Just because my parents aren't normal doesn't mean that I'm not."

He laughed. "Well guess what, Zuri?"

"What?" she asked, actually wondering what he was going to say next.

"Even though you're the daughter of the Lady of the Pagoda and the Chaos Monster, I dare," he said, leaning in closer. "Because _I'm_ the son of a woman who returned from the dead and the man who founded the most important company on the Planet."

Two pairs of lips touched sweetly. Azura looked at him with wide eyes. "Why do you dare?"

"Because I have to do that before I do this," Patrick said mischieviously. The next meeting of lips did not end quite as quickly as the first.

* * *

"Perhaps it's time we told him the truth."

"Are you crazy, Reeve?" asked Raieyana.

"No. I've been thinking about it for a long time. You know how having Jenova and Mako inside you gives you a connection to other people like that. I can't connect with Patrick."

"You connect to our children just fine!"

"Ray, that's because they are _mine_, too!" He sighed. "Look. I'm just tired of dealing with him day in and day out. He has no respect for me. He must sense somehow that I have no right to tell him what to do."

"He was just fine today. Besides, you have every right. You provided for him. You put your life on the line for him."

"I can tell him that, but he'll just roll his eyes like he always does when we tell him about the past."

"You think he's unstable and out of control."

Reeve tried to take her into his arms, but Raieyana wouldn't even meet his eye. "I just don't know if he will be able to stay under this roof after he gets much older."

"So your answer to my unstable son is to tell him that all he knows about his life is a lie?" "Ray, don't make it sound like that—"

"It's what we'd be doing. And the way things run in my family, the truth doesn't always yield the best results."

"If I had it my way, he'd have known the truth all along!" His eyes flashed in anger. "Raieyana. We can't keep it from him forever. Besides, he won't have to _read_ the truth at least."

"What if he then goes to find Cloud?"

"I haven't seen the man in fourteen years. If he's made himself that scarce, I doubt Patrick will ever find him."

"Well, perhaps the day will come when I have to tell him. But let's wait."

"Why?"

She cuddled up close to him. "He's awful found of Azura, and with her here to train..."

"You think he's magically going to become tolerant or something?"

"He let me hug him tonight."

Reeve was quiet. "When was the last time before now?"

"The day before he killed off half the chocobo farm five years ago. Before that day, I swear, he was someone different from who he was now."

He lightly stroked her hair. "Kids grow up, Ray."

"I know. But not overnight." She kissed him softly. "So you agree, we wait?"

"I'll see if Zuri has an extended effect on him. Tomorrow I'll start looking for it. Right now, I'm going to sleep. Still angry?"

Raieyana shook her head and smiled, allowing Reeve's arms to finally wrap around her. Drawing her head to his chest, she snuggled close and allowed herself to drift away to the land of dreams.

* * *

("_Hello, child."_

What did you call me?

_"Child. That's what you are, aren't you? Fourteen is a long way from adult."_

That's where most make their mistake. I'm not like other fourteen-year-olds.

_"Oh, I know that. That's why I speak to you. You're special. Not like the others."_

I know that well enough. Being so close to the Mako explosion when I was an infant accelerated my growth.

_"So your mother says."_

You dare call Mother a liar? Come out of this cowardly unconsciousness and dare to meet me face to face. I will cut your venomous head from your body, then rip you limb from limb.

_"I do not call her anything. I am not here to slander anyone, just show you the truth."_

The truth about what?

_"The truth about _you_, Patrick...")_

.

_Patrick peered through the white haze. (A hall of doors.) He knew he was dreaming and was angry over losing control of his mind. He had no choice but to go along. "Open each door," the voice had said._

_He turned the handle of the first door. The top of it was painted white, but faded into a blood-red at the bottom. Opening the door, he stepped inside._

_(This is a bedroom at Lia's house.) His eyes adjusted quickly to the dark, and he saw two figures on the bed. One on top of the other. (A blond-haired man and...Mother?) Raieyana screamed and the man slammed her head against the wall. Patrick was enraged. (Damn you.) He walked up to the man and looked into his eyes. Blue mako eyes. Looking at the age of his mother, Patrick tried to figure out who the man could be. (Could that be...Cloud Strife?)_

_Suddenly, the two figures faded, and the room was empty, save for Patrick. (What does this have to do with me?) He walked back through the doorway and found himself back in darkness with the voice._

.

_"Several doors for several dreams,_

_Soon you learn what they all mean._

_Through passing all these scenes in time,_

_All truth will be placed in your mind._

_After all these things you shall behold,_

_The future will have been foretold..._

.

_The future will have been..."_

.

(_"...foretold."_) Patrick awakened with a jerk. Azura stirred next to him but settled back down to sleep. He looked down at her pretty face. (I know what it's like to be teased by a girl in that certain way. The way that brings you almost to the edge. But I would never, ever become possessed to do such a thing like that...that _beast_ did to my mother.) Brushing a hand over her cheek, he leaned down to kiss her softly. (Because of two people. My most beautiful mother, and my only friend in the world.)

After some time, he finally relaxed, but sleep would not come again that night. Patrick didn't mind, for he just watched Azura, wondering if she had been told not to leave the house...just because she was with him.

* * *

Raieyana felt herself being called from sleep, but she was fighting every step of the way. (I'm tired) her mind mumbled to itself. Finally though, she was torn back into reality and happened to hear a knocking at the door before she had managed to do a nice toss or turn.

"Stupid salesmen," she muttered half-consciously as she pulled a robe over herself and proceeded to the front door. "I'll never figure out how they get vacuum cleaners up the rope ladders." She paused, thinking over what she had just mumbled. (This is Undor-Hai...no salesmen.) Stifling a giggle, she opened the door.

"This is the residence of Reeve Jordan, I assume." The visitor was a tall man with a business-like voice.

"Uh, I guess," said Raieyana. Since he was quite a bit taller than her, the checking out was done from the feet upwards. (Suit...yeah...ironed...I hope this isn't about Alcor.) "What are you doing here at such a time...?" she asked as her eyes continued their achingly slow scrutiny. As she got to his face, he closed his eyes.

"Took me this long to get up the damn trail. Didn't muster up the balls to go over that gorge on the rope until about sunset."

"Most of us use the _other _trail." (Red hair, kinda unkempt.)

He opened his eyes wide. "There's another one?"

She looked up to meet them. "Yeah..." her voice trailed off in shock. Standing before her was a man in a blue suit with red hair and eyes. Blue-green mako eyes.


	5. Part 2: Darkness Revisited - Chapter 5

Part 2— Darkness Revisited

.

Chapter 5

.

"Who _are_ you?" asked Raieyana, half-frightened.

The man chuckled. "I had no idea I would be startling to you. I'm sorry. Your father must have been very detailed in his descriptions of his late colleague."

"Well, I admit, he was. I knew who he was before I ever caught a glimpse of him. Of course, I was very young at the time."

"Considering Jack Reno died fourteen years ago, I would expect so."

She folded her arms across her chest. "So you aren't pretending to be him. What is your agenda?"

"My agenda? Is...rather long. I will tell you though, if you let me come in to sit down. Unless you'd have to go ask your father first..."

"My father?" Raieyana scrutinized the caller's face. "My father has been dead for over twenty years." (Both my biological father _and_ Tseng. What's up with this guy... I wonder how cautious I should really be...)

"What do you mean? Alcor hasn't even existed for twenty years yet, how could Reeve Jordan have died before it was founded?"

"Well that would be impossible. But Reeve Jordan is my _husband_! My father was Tseng Amine." No one outside of Avalanche and their close friends knew of Raieyana's real family ties, for the obvious reason of keeping her from any more public scrutiny than she received as the wife of a prominent businessman.

.

The man looked shocked. "My humblest apologies. I was not aware Reeve had taken a wife so many years his junior."

"So many? I know ten is quite a bit when people are younger, but now it seems as inconsequential as a week's difference."

"This is all very confusing. I had you pegged as Reeve's twenty-one-year-old daughter, Aeris."

(Pegged?) "If I invite you in, will you tell me why you were spying here?"

"Certainly."

"Fine." Raieyana coolly met his eye. "If you tell me who you are, we can continue this conversation."

"My name is Ryald. Jack Reno was my father."

* * *

"Dark forces are converging on Undor-Hai once again. They began five years ago. I waited for any indication of trouble, but I have seen nothing." Red XIII looked at the group watching him. "There must be something there, though. Trying to tell us we can stop the problem before it starts." He had woken up Barret's entire household at 2 a.m.

"We probably couldn't figure out what it would be until it does start." Always the sensible businesswoman, Marlene shook her head. "I didn't spend years at the Junon Academy and even more in business school to run around after mystic problems friends of my father have."

"I have been feeling negative vibes at home for quite some time. I could notice a difference in the atmosphere of the landscape, as soon as I left the Midgar side of the continent," said Aeris.

"Dammit anyway," said Barret. "In my day, it always was the Shinra. Nowadays, no one knows the hell's goin' on!"

"There haven't been any problems yet, Dad."

Red XIII's head snapped up. "I have been alive for nearly thrice the time you have, child. For my species, I am barely entering adulthood, but for yours, I would seem elderly. I know when the presence of energy is a slight setback and when a crisis is brewing. Well, I see 'crisis' written in neon letters above Undor-Hai."

"What do you propose to do about it, Nanaki?" asked Aeris.

"What did you call me?"

"Uhh...Nanaki. That's your birth name, isn't it?"

The creature cracked a grin, which was only identifiable from a snarl by the way he rolled his eyes. "To tell you the truth, Rissy, I've been called 'Red' so long it startles me to hear 'Nanaki.' Even the youngsters in the Canyon call me 'Red,' or Planet forbid, 'Reddie.'"

"I suppose it's like how everyone calls me 'Rissy' so no one thinks I'm an Ancient come back from the dead."

"Precisely. My idea for right now is to call Tifa out here from Cosmo Canyon. She just became an Elder, and her area of expertise deals with positive and negative energy flow, as well as auras. She has a theory."

"Teef, an Elder at the Canyon?" Barret beamed with pride. "An' she's one of the original Avalanche, after Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie."

"A theory on auras?" sniffed Marlene skeptically. At twenty-six, she had definitely left all fairy tale possibilities aside. She hardly believed that materia could be used to cast magic.

"Don't make me do a disservice to her great effort by expecting an explanation. All I know is how it has to do with the energy a person projects, and how that energy works when groups of people interact with each other."

"Sounds like new-age-y bullshit."

"Marlene! Who th' hell told you to go and be sayin' shit like that to people?" spouted an embarrassed Barret.

He was met by three pointed looks.

"I suppose I'm not the best role model for propa English...but she's a girl and should talk more, y'know, lady-like."

"It's hard to be a lady when your daddy has a gun grafted into his arm," she retorted.

Patting his gun arm, he gave his adopted daughter a little smile. "Honey, if it wasn't for this, you'd have to go tellin' people 'I ain't got no daddy.'"

"True." She managed a smile. "Since Tifa probably won't arrive within the hour, can I go back to sleep now? I took time off from Alcor to go home, visit my dad and stepmother and all. But the most important thing on the agenda was actually sleeping."

Marlene's stepmother was Elmyra, of course. She and Barret grew quite fond of each other after spending so much time being neighbors. Marlene adored Elmyra after their time together during the battle versus Sephiroth and the prevention of his resurrection. This was all very fortunate, and the couple made it legal after they learned Elmyra was the only one who could manage Marlene in her wild teen years.

"Yes, of course," said Red XIII. "Let's all go back to sleep. I'm sure that's what Tifa's doing, and probably all of Undor-Hai, for that matter."

* * *

Poor Red XII was incorrect about the state of slumber in Undor-Hai. Raieyana let Ryald into her living room, barely suppressing her shock. "Reno never told me he had a son," she stated accusingly.

"Of course he wouldn't. He didn't know he had one. I was illegitimate, obviously, and my mother knew his reputation as a Turk. She'd rather be a single parent then let him have me murdered to escape child support. I suppose in your world, Ms. Jordan, having babies is always bliss." His whole statement was filled with bitterness.

"I understand perfectly how that could happen. My life, including birth and the related things, has not been bliss, but that's not really any of your concern. What is of your concern is how much I want to impress on you that your father would never have done such a thing as have you killed."

"Why not? Everyone in the world knows he let the plate loose on Sector 7 back in the days of Shinra."

"No excuse is enough for that incident. He had his orders. As my father was also involved with the plate release, and I know what a good man he was, I never faulted Reno for that, either."

"It was also part of his job to cut all ties, lose all responsibilities except to the Shinra."

"Who told you all of this foolishness?" asked Raieyana, puzzled.

"My mother. She knew how things in Shinra worked. She dated men from the company just to learn as many secrets as possible."

"Ryald. My father was a Turk, I knew Reno very well, and my husband was the director of public relations for Shinra. My cousin was Rufus Shinra's successor. My ties reach far out to the heart of the company, and I tell you she was mistaken."

"Of course you would defend them," he said.

"I gave the orders for the attack on Edinborough, and I gave the okay for the Mako blast to be set on Midgar. I infiltrated their building in the Junon days and released prisoners. I doubt I was their most favorite person. I had a warrant on my head at one point, and later, during your father's second stint at the Turks, he was given the offer of over a million gil to kidnap me and give me to the Head of Science."

The silence seemed to separate the two from connecting with each other. "I don't understand. You say Reno wasn't bad, though."

"He was my husband's best friend. They founded Alcor together. He took a knife in the chest to prevent my kidnapping. He and Reeve surrendered themselves to Shinra to buy Junon a time to prepare for attack and a woman named Elena to escape the city."

"You speak of him as if he was admirable."

"So I do, Ryald. The day he died, he saved the lives of my husband and my youngest son, my best friend's husband, and many of my friends. He also saved my life."

He shook his head. "Who are you to say that it wasn't all for personal gain?"

"He did it because he cared!"

.

Ryald stood up, disgusted. "Look, all I came here for was information on my father and whether or not I should be rightful heir to Alcor."

"This is information."

"Just because you were foolish enough to be taken in by him..."

"Taken in?"

"Tell me one thing, though. How'd you arrange his death to give your husband full control of the company? He had no connections, if he gave it to Reeve there would have been no question. You guys were so stupid though, making out a will leaving it to _you_."

"He wrote those words..." Raieyana turned away.

"Look at me and hear me out!" He grabbed her by the shoulders. "I'm here to get what's _mine_!"

She looked at him in surprise and fear. (I can't reach my weapon.) She had left it at the door, still in a confused state from Ryald's resemblance to Reno. (God, they have the same eyes.) She tried to look into them, see some piece of her lost lover, but the blue in these eyes were ice cold.

Ryald drew a knife. "Maybe I should leave your husband a present so he takes my message more seriously." He held the blade up, and it sparkled in the moonbeam that streamed in from the window. "Or maybe I should just leave him the message...written in your precious blood."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

.

Patrick cocked his head in thought. (Sounds like there are voices downstairs...) He listened carefully. (Mother and someone I don't know...they sound angry. I better check it out.) He slipped his T-shirt back on and grabbed his weapon of choice, a huge sword. Heading towards the door, he paused for a second to glance at Azura. (For her sake, I hope nothing bad is happening down there.)

He had ears like a bat, that missed nothing, and eyes that saw too clearly what happened in the depths of the night. He silently crept down the hallway and to the stairs, not even letting a floorboard creak underneath him. Peering into the shadows, he saw what he had come looking for.

(That man has Mother by the shoulders and he's shaking her!) Readying his sword, he prepared to walk into the living room and ask if everything was all right. Suddenly he noticed a metallic gleam in the air near Raieyana's throat and he heard a few whispered words very distinctly: "...I should just leave him the message...written in your precious blood."

It seemed like Patrick's blood curdled, boiled over, then froze in his veins. The rage within him started a slow glow, but like the embers of a dying fire, soon flew into flames as his own thoughts provoked him more. He remembered the scene from his dream. (I'll burn in hell before I'll let anyone touch my mother in a hurtful way again. If I have to tear that man's arms off, I will do it!)

Anger dulls the senses in ways that a drug cannot. Patrick soon became seemingly deaf and dumb as his fury overtook all rationality. He always said later that the very last thing he remembered about the events that took place that night...was the look on the man's face as he pounced his attack.

Patrick's memory blackout ended several minutes later. Ryald's head was rolling on the floor, and Patrick was covered in blood.

* * *

The sound that Azura awoke to, just before the break of dawn, was of a single scream of complete horror.

"He's dead! He's dead!"

She turned over to see if Patrick had heard the cries. Suddenly, she became very scared. Patrick wasn't there.

* * *

Reeve was a heavy sleeper. Luckily, he was in mid-roll-over when he heard screaming come to his ears. (That's Raieyana!)

He jumped up as fast as he could, grabbing both a first-aid kit and a weapon on his way towards her. (Gotta be prepared for anything.)

* * *

Yuffie and Vincent were at the top of the stairs when they saw Reeve approach, followed by Kati, Sean, and Ishmael.

Vincent saw the first aid kit and said quietly, "I doubt that will help in this case." Seeing Reeve's weapon, he added, "I'm pretty sure the time of danger has passed too."

Reeve slowly walked down to where Raieyana was kneeling.

She was rocking back and forth, her arms wrapped carefully around herself. Sometimes laughing, sometimes crying, the only time she paused was to wipe tears from her face.

"Ray?"

She looked at him with empty eyes. "Patrick killed Reno."

Reeve fought the urge to be sick as he saw the head sitting in front of her, when the body was five feet away.

"I followed his eyes here. To see if the light in them went out."

He spoke gently. "Raieyana, Reno has been dead for a long time."

She looked at him as if he had revealed some terrible, startling truth to her. "No!" she moaned, and began to sob uncontrollably.

Cradling in her arms like a child, Reeve looked to the body and saw Patrick standing before it, bloody sword in hand. "What happened?" he asked, trying to give his stepson the benefit of the doubt.

"He touched her."

Noticing the look on Patrick's face, he wondered if he was in danger for holding his wife. "Touched her?"

"Like...the blond man."

Reeve's startled eyes met Vincent's. (Is it possible...that he could know?)

.

Suddenly, a teary Azura burst between her parents and ran down the stairs. "Where's Pat? Is he okay?" Then she saw.

"Zuri. Go back to bed. Now," ordered Yuffie.

She could not move; she couldn't even let her eyes stray from the bloody sword. "How?" she whispered. Then she raised her voice angrily. "Why did you do this?"

.

Patrick snapped out of his disorientation. "Zuri?" He suddenly noticed his bloody sword. He dropped it, and the clang echoed loudly throughout the house. "Where's Mother?"

"With me." Reeve's eyes narrowed. (This was all just an act. Pretending to lose control just like Strife.)

"Mother?" Seeing her condition, he stepped towards her.

"Haven't you done enough to her?"

"I was protecting her."

Looking for understanding, he met contempt. "You did that so very well, too. Can't you do anything but destruction, Patrick? If this is what you call _protection_, you'd be better off anywhere but here in this house."

"You're telling your own son to leave?"

Reeve could only remain silent.

Patrick looked all around him and found nothing but unsympathetic eyes. Words echoed inside his head.

(_"He's violent..." said Lia. "I love you and your family, but I can't risk having him in my home."_

_"You can't see the Valentines because you won't stop killing things..." Reeve shook his head. "Wutaian wildlife is very delicate, if you chop up things and ruin them, they'd never forgive you."_

_"Honey, can't you just try to control yourself? For my sake?" A tear rolled down Raieyana's cheek. "Those chocobos didn't do a thing to you."_

_Azura was puzzled. "My parents wouldn't let me train here. And they told me to stay right on the porch..."_

_On the porch..._

_So we can watch him..._)

"I think you wanted me out of your life even before I was in it," said Patrick to Reeve. "From this day forth, you are no longer my father. Since you never seemed to be quite sympathetic enough to be one to me, anyway."

"Patrick..." he said slowly.

"No! I asked for you to believe me, but I can see in your eyes you blame me. So I'll go get my things, and you won't see me again. Give my love to Mother. She's the only one in this family who bothered to return it."

Everyone's eyes were on Patrick as he hurried up the steps to his bedroom. Once inside, he started trembling. (My talk was big, but I'm still just a scared little boy.) This bothered him enough to return his strength to packing. He added orbs of materia and a few spare items and weapons to his sack, along with all the gil he had picked up monster hunting. (Good thing daddy didn't know about my little after-school job.) He shook the gil-pouch. (Full to the brim.)

* * *

Azura was at a loss at what to do. Reeve was silent, holding Raieyana as she cried and babbled. Her parents and siblings were visibly embarrassed to be viewing the family conflict that erupted from the grotesque scene in front of them. Ishmael looked as if his pain was about to cause him to pass out.

In the middle of all this, Azura started walking towards the door.

"Where are you going?" demanded Vincent.

"I—I wanna sit on the swing." She ran outside, sobbing.

Vincent started to go after her, but Yuffie held him back. "She wants to be alone, and she's very upset. We need to be careful of her feelings."

"I want her in my sight until he is gone."

"You think he'll leave? He's so young, and I'm sure he must have had some reason to have..."

"Yuffie." His voice was sharp. "I know you're a mother, and your mothering instinct tells you to be careful with Patrick, as he's a child. But we both know he had violent tendencies, and now it's been proven. Our main concern is to help Raieyana and she'd be better off if he went and dropped off the face of the Planet."

"How could you say that?"

"We know how he came to be here. Perhaps Raieyana loving him so much only delayed the inevitable. He was born to do this."

"You had pity on Sephiroth because of Hojo's treatments. You said he could have been normal if he had the chance."

"What I've seen tonight has made me think I was probably quite wrong. Anything with the mark of Hojo on it is tainted. Patrick was tainted many times over."

.

Patrick came down the stairs with his pack in hand. At the doorway, he turned and addressed everyone in the room. "You probably all think that this is good riddance," he said, "but you will never know how close you came to losing Mother. No one cares about that more than I. Yet I am blamed for this. If it's because I can't change who I am, I can't be sorry. I was born a certain way, but I have also become what you made of me."

He walked out the door just as the sun rose. Beams of light from the east radiated around his figure as he left them behind with their expectations.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

.

Azura found herself back on the porch swing later that morning, while the adults asked for some privacy. (They think I can't handle them talking, but they let Kati and Sean stay. Why do they treat me like such a baby?)

She thought about dawn. Patrick had been startled to see her on the swing as he prepared to leave his home behind for good.

.

_"Are you really going to go?" she asked sadly._

_"I have no choice. I think maybe things had been building up to this point." He met her eyes with sadness. "I'm sorry though. I'll miss you."_

_"Then stay," she pleaded._

_"Things will be easier for you this way." Patrick climbed down the ladder and began to walk away from the place he had lived his entire life. Unable to help himself, he turned back for one last gaze upon the house. He saw Azura watching him from the swing. He didn't turn away until he had burned the last image of her deeply into his mind. (Long black hair, gray eyes glimmering in the first morning light, wearing a sweet little nightgown covered with flowers. Cherry blossoms._)

* * *

"I put her to bed, but I don't know what we can do with her," said Reeve softly. "She went into some kind of shock. And I can't help but think we have to call some sort of police here."

"You know that's impossible, Dad," said Ishmael. "This place is still a secret and this man was an intruder on our secret. Patrick would have to face the Undorian court for this, had he stayed, but he is gone."

"I suppose not much can be done then, but to have Lia arrange to cremate the body." He paused. "My main concern is with Ray, anyway."

"We should probably remove her from this place," suggested Vincent. "This memory would be most unpleasant to begin with, and in this case, very inhibitive to her recovery."

"We could take her to Wutai," said Yuffie.

"There is no one there who could possibly help her though. I think our best choice would be Cosmo Canyon. Peaceful and very non-hectic, with many intelligent Elders. Since she is in no state to travel in a conventional way, we should call Cid on the PHS and ask for his Airship services."

"That would work out nicely," said Reeve.

Yuffie looked over and saw her son and elder daughter exchanging glances. "What is it?"

Kati looked at Sean expectantly.

He rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'll say it."

No one noticed Azura eavesdropping on the conversation. She had stooped under the open screen of the window and had been taking in all the planning.

"What's to be done about Zuri?" asked Sean.

"What do you mean?" asked Yuffie.

"Mom, she has to be very upset over everything, and I don't think dragging her around half the world would be the best thing for her right now."

"You're probably right," said Vincent. "I'll have Cid drop her off at Wutai before we all head to Cosmo Canyon."

.

Azura fumed over this. (It's true that I'm upset. Such a scary thing happened last night. And now Raieyana isn't well, and Pat has become an outcast. But, the last thing I want to happen is to be dropped off at Wutai like I was merely the toddler I used to be, back during the second Reunion.)

She knew that the decisions of her father were not anything for her to reckon with. The only person who ever dared do this was Yuffie, who was only successful part of the time herself. (So I will have to go along with things, be dropped off as a prisoner in Wutai, while they go fix things. And they'll never let me see Pat again!)

The thoughts almost brought tears to her eyes. But suddenly, for the first time in her life, a plan for disobeying began to form in her mind. (I've always played along with everything my parents wanted for me, and ignored my own needs and desires because I didn't want to be "in trouble." Yet, I never get any reward for it. This time, I'm going to do what _my_ mind tells me to do.)

(I'm going to play along for as long as I need to. But I will not board that Airship. Not for all the silly parental promises in the world.)

* * *

A PHS in Barret's house rang at about ten in the morning. Red XIII, who was setting the table for a nice brunch, glanced at Aeris. "Could you get that, Riss?"

"Sure thing." She picked up the portable phone and pushed the button. "Hello?"

_"Rissy, what are you doing answering Red's phone? And where are you?"_

"Hi Dad. Red's here in Kalm and he's got his hands...umm I mean, paws, full at the moment. I was going to head home right after brunch. What's up?" She sensed the tension in her father's voice and was very concerned.

_"A lot has happened in the past day. The Valentines arrived here for a vacation. There was an...incident here last night. Your mother isn't very well at the moment. We were going to arrange to take her to Cosmo Canyon to help her recover."_

"You better call Tifa fast then, Dad. Red wanted her to join him in Kalm. He said there were negative forces over Undor-Hai!"

_"I don't doubt it," Reeve muttered._

"Daddy?"

_"Honey, just tell Red what I told you. And don't bother heading home. We'll have Cid pick you up too. I'll call Tifa. Bye sweetheart."_

.

"You look worried, Aeris," said Red XIII.

"That was my dad. Mom's not well...something bad happened last night...and they want to take her to the Canyon. I told him to get hold of Tifa. I have to stay here 'til they get Cid to fly out on his Airship."

"Then this is something major."

"Yes it is. And they won't be able to get Cid to fly out there today."

"Why not?"

"Well, I think this is the time of his annual fishing trip with Baker. You know, so it encompasses the anniversary of when he told Shera how he felt about her. The whole family goes fishing in Gongaga."

"Of course." Red XIII smiled. "That little rascal of his must be what, ten now?"

Aeris laughed. "Can't you keep track of our puny human years? He turned twelve two months ago."

The creature just shook his head. "I barely keep track of your parents' birthdays, child. Once you make them grandparents, I'll be lucky to remember which go to which family. It's the price of being old."

"You're not old, Reddie!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around his neck. "You're the cutest widdle kitten I ever sawed!"

He growled. "Watch it, Aeris Aula Jordan." A smirk. "Too bad I remember your whole name, child."

"I'm so scared." She paused. "Well...actually, I wonder if my mom is all right?"

He thoughtfully nuzzled her shoulder. "We'll find out how she is as soon as we can. Until then, let's keep up our strength. Elmyra cooks very well...enough to make me hungry at the most unappetizing times."

* * *

"I'm very sorry for disturbing you," said Reeve soberly, "but Cid, this is very serious. We need your help to get Ray where she needs to be."

Five pairs of eyes watched the PHS conversation intently. One other pair, filled with anger, was peeking over the windowsill.

"I understand that. Tomorrow morning, first thing? Okay, we can manage to do that. Yes, there's a bare spot in the forest slightly east of the village where you can land. Well, this is an urgent matter, and we can hardly carry her over the trail... Thank you so much." Reeve hung up the PHS. "Tomorrow morning at dawn we take our things to this place in the forest. You might not want to take all your luggage, as we're in a hurry."

They all nodded.

"I'm going to go rest. We've been up for hours, and the amount of sleep I got was about zero last night." Reeve's game of PHS tag had lasted into the afternoon, and it wasn't until now that anyone felt the slightest bit of relaxation.

"I suggest we all do the same," said Vincent. "I'll be up in a minute," he said to Yuffie, "I'm going to go talk to Zuri."

Yuffie nodded and headed upstairs, followed by the others.

.

Stepping outside onto the porch, Vincent saw Azura sitting on the swing, as he expected. "Well, we've figured out what we're going to do."

"Good. Does that mean I can actually not be exiled from the rest of the people in this house?"

"You didn't need to be there, honey."

"I wouldn't have been alone if I _was_ there, but you don't care about that, do you?"

"Look, Azura. Raieyana is not well, and she is our first priority."

"Patrick wasn't well and you let Reeve throw him out into the wilderness!"

"Young lady, I think you should shut your mouth and let them have their own family business without your input. I was right when I thought you couldn't handle this. Cid will drop you off at home before we go to Cosmo Canyon."

"Whatever, Father," she muttered as she stood up.

Vincent was startled. This was the first time she had called him anything besides "Daddy."

"Pretend this is a punishment if you like, but I doubt you ever would have given me the chance to prove I could handle it. In your mind, there's no way in hell 'baby Zuri' will ever be able to handle anything." She stormed into the house.

Vincent watched her and sighed. (I am sorry she is upset, but this is the best and safest way. Also, Wutai is one of the farthest places from here, which means the farthest place from Patrick if he should return.)

.

No one had noticed that Azura continued to stay in Patrick's room. She looked around. (If he was here, he could tell me just what to do to get away from everything.)

She sighed and lay down on the bed in the place where Patrick had been sleeping the previous night. Lost in thought, her eyes just wandered the room, looking at all the things that made this room belong to her friend. Suddenly, her eyes came to rest on the table next to her. There was a sketch pad lying on it, so she picked it up.

Flipping through the pages, she saw brilliant, lifelike drawings filling each and every page. Many were of local wildlife; she went "aww" over a baby cougar, and smiled at the thought of how Patrick would have to stay perfectly still for such a long time. All that, just to get a sketch of the timid creature before it ran away.

Every so often there would be weaponry designs, sketches of possibilities for moves to use while fighting. There was also one disturbing drawing called "My Two Faces." About half of it looked like a portrait of Reeve, the other was a blond man that Azura could not remember ever meeting in her life. The frightening part was the eyes; vacant, lifeless and glowing red. The date in the corner was for the night before.

She quickly turned the page, expecting to see the end of the pictures, but there was one last drawing, an incomplete sketch of a pretty girl asleep on a pillow. It was titled "My One Friend." Dated also for the night before, Patrick had scribbled a message at the bottom.

_"This is my Zuri."_

Azura, flattered, hugged the sketchbook to her chest. (He has made me into some beautiful nymph though, it's not like me at all though. I'm too plain for that picture.) As expected, the last few pages of the book were blank, and she closed the book and checked it over. (Such a treasure. I'm going to keep it for him... Well, more for me to remember him by.) Then she saw something intricate drawn on the back.

"My Special Place," it was titled. Azura recognized the itsy version of his house, even the placement of the trees around it. But the picture was very large and intricate, and an arrow pointed from the title to a place deep in the forest.

She suddenly realized she had indeed found a treasure. She held, in her hands, a map that showed the way to the most likely place Patrick could be found.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

.

Patrick sat, perched high above the trees. He was at a part of Mt. Crist that was rarely traversed by the Undorians. His small hunting platform had developed into a refuge when he was upset or angry.

It actually wasn't unusual for Patrick to leave home for a day or two, spending the night in this platform-turned-treehouse. He'd leave to cool down and return in a better state of mind. However, the only person in the family who knew where he went and what he did when he vanished was Raieyana. She was in no state to inform them now that Patrick might not have left for good.

He sat and watched his house, recalling how no one had tried to stop him from leaving. (Correction. No one but Azura.) As hard and intently as he had stared at her before turning his back on the world he knew...he was still already beginning to lose the memory of her face. It is hard to recall something you only had the chance to look at for a day or so.

The sky was dark; night had come again, like it always did. (No matter what happens to its puny minions on the surface, the Planet keeps spinning as if that's the only thing that ever matters. The only thing we can depend on, no matter what happens, is that eventually the night will come again. Even at the polar caps where day could last for weeks in the summer, the night returns eventually. To all lives, some darkness shall fall. Even if it's only nature's darkness.)

There was only one light on at his house. (Who would be up so late after all that occurred last night?) He realized that he had never seen a light in that particular window. He became even more startled when he figured out that it was because that window was the one in his room.

(Are they going through my things, trying to discover what makes me tick?) He reached into his knapsack and pulled out his journal. (Where's my sketchpad?) A slight panic overran him as he remembered he had left it on his bedside table.

A sad quiet descended over him. (Now I don't even have my drawing of Zuri. From this day on, I shall be like someone dead to her, and I will never see her again. I can't even have the pitiful likeness my wretched hands scribbled out.) Patrick sat and watched the light in his window, vowing to stand guard until the precise moment it was gone and the sky was consumed by darkness.

* * *

Azura woke up at midnight, just like she had wanted to. Her shaky hand had managed to set the oil lamp alight, and, ignoring the phantom shadows on the walls in the hallway, she entered Patrick's bedroom.

There were still a few weapons sitting on the racks. Patrick had tried to become proficient in as many as he could. She paused and looked each one over carefully. Lifting the crossbow off of the braces, she remembered the archery events she had won in Wutai, lack of training aside. She grabbed the reserve arrows beneath it. (They're so small and sharp, like darts almost. So you can carry lots.)

Slinging her first choice over her back, she looked for another. (Hmm...a rod...and then a rod with a button?) She grabbed the second weapon and held it at arms' length, daring to push the button. Two blades popped out of either end, and she recalled that this particular type of rod was called a staff. She studied it carefully before deciding the button was the only way to retract the blades; she breathed a sigh of relief when she found out she was right. (Such a pretty weapon.) It had the gorgeous distinction of an adamantine, Undorian crafted staff. The blades were black stars encircled by a red circle.

She took a deep breath. Her next step was to go through Patrick's closet and drawers, which spooked her a bit. But she knew deep down that she ought to bring armor and materia for her trek through the forest. The top drawer in his larger dresser brought victory. Immediately, she tied one of the ribbons around her upper arm. The assortment of bracelets led to an internal debate, though. Patrick had everything from a Carbon Bangle to the good, all-purpose Mercury Bands that were unique to Undor-Hai.

(He told me that the one he always wears is the Ziedrich.) She couldn't decide which kind to use, though. (An elemental defense would be good, but I'd rather have something that would help me be strong.) A certain delicate armlet caught her eye, and she pulled it from the back of the drawer. "Mystile," she said softly, reading the engraving. (I like it. I'm drawn to it for some reason.) She slipped it on, admiring the way it sparkled in the lamplight.

She removed the large blue case from the drawer, finding row upon row of materia contained inside. Although most of them were of the basic kind, the ones that Raieyana mastered every other day in her training classes, Azura saw a nice collection of summons. Each materia had its own little foam holder and the type was written below the slot. She took the Cure with the most AP, and a Poison, Lightning, and Heal. Her eyes lit up as she found a Mime and a six-star Enemy Skill. She added a Master All and a summon called Hephaestus. Finally, she found a purple one called "HP Plus" that had her puzzled. Then she remembered her brother telling her that more HP just meant you could take more hits before you... (...died. I'm really doing something dangerous here. But I'd rather be out living than hiding in Wutai.)

She found a bag in his closet and packed up the sketchpad, along with some special battle items and a couple "disposable tents." There was only one thing left to do. She crept with the lamp into Aeris' room. (I'm sorry, Rissy, but being the princess doll back home has left me without proper clothing for this trip.) She found a pair of brown leather pants that the tall Aeris had long outgrown and a deep green sleeveless sweater. The shirt was rather loose on Aeris' slender figure, but fit Azura a little tightly in one certain spot.

Glancing in the mirror, she suddenly had two thoughts. (I look a lot like Mom...) Despite her gray eyes, which Vincent swore his own mother had, she had received the majority of her coloring from Yuffie, while getting a temperament from neither. (...and when did I get boobs?) She turned sideways and ran a hand lightly over her torso. (Maybe it's just the sweater.)

Azura felt both guilty and extremely lucky when she discovered not only did she have the same size feet as Aeris, but Aeris had left a pair of shoes that were perfect for running around and killing monsters. She took them and put the sneakers on her own feet, then paused to leave a very apologetic note to Aeris, leaving more than enough gil to replace what she took from the closet.

The note she left to her parents was much shorter and full of little apology.

.

_"To Mother and Father:_

_I refuse to go back to Wutai and hide like a child, even though that is what you seem to want most for me. I have to go out and learn what life is like sometime, and if you won't let me live with your permission..._

_I'm just going out to have a life of my own. I offer no apologies and no regrets. I would only have regret if I went back to Wutai._

—_Azura Valentine"_

_

* * *

_

(_"It's time."_

Time? For what?

_"A promise was made unto you long, long ago. The time for you to receive the rewards of what you have sewn is very near. Do you still refuse them?"_

What are you talking about?

_"Your son has been cast out by the man whom he has been told to call 'Father.'"_

My son? What has happened to Patrick? What has he done?

_"He saved his mother's life. But eyes that were discriminatory viewed his brave actions as a crime."_

He's only fourteen...

_"Only? You've waited at least that long..."_

Is this the voice of my tempter?

_"Perhaps. The voice of your tempter was also the voice of your Savior. Cloud Strife, sometimes certain deeds have to be done. You must be addressed certain ways in order to cause you to go down the right path."_

I hardly think Patrick's conception was the right path.

_"All that happened is how it should be. The crime was only as bad as it had to be for you to know remorse, and for Raieyana to learn the lessons she needed to learn. In the scheme of things, all on this Planet are just playing pieces."_

So why do you speak of this "reward" that was presented as a temptation?

_"You have chosen to live your life as a hermit, an outcast. The time for your return to your friends is very near. This is part of the reward."_

Reward? I'm finished with the "saving the world" bit.

_"That's what you think."_)

* * *

Azura stumbled for about the twentieth time and fell. A tear slipped down her cheek before she was able to stop herself. (I won't cry...I—I won't!) She closed her eyes. (I can't go back now, I'd look so foolish. Even if I get myself lost, I have to keep going. This is my fate, whatever comes, comes.)

She suddenly heard a low growl behind her. (Oh...shit!) She turned around and clumsily wielded the staff. In front of her was a dragon that was about eight feet at the shoulder. She cast Poison and prayed.

She felt an odd sensation course through her body. A bit of power seemed to surge forth from the green crystal in her bracelet and soar out from her hands. This stream flew forward and hit the dragon directly in the heart.

The dragon took damage and snarled. It cast a threatening eye on Azura, judging her size and strength. It reared back and ran towards her, ready to attack her head on. She turned and ran, but tripped over the same tree root as before and landed on her hands–hard. Holding up her staff in defense, a scream of terror escaped her lips.

.

A scream awakened Patrick from his sleeping bag. Unlike the last time he went to protect someone, a momentary lapse into debate coursed through him. He decided that since he was already banished, nothing worse could be done to him. (I still have my conscience to live with. If I am aware of my actions, then I must do the right thing.) He grabbed his spear and jumped right out the window.

He ran in the direction of the sound until he heard the distinctive battle snarls of a Sapphire Dragon. They had become very common after the Midgar explosion, but now only remained in this uninhabited area of the continent. The dragon slashed at its prey on the ground, and Patrick could hear a feminine whimper of pain. He set his teeth and carefully touched the materia on his armlet with the level 4x Cut. On a normal user, it sent forth a surge of adrenaline which would let them get anywhere from three to five attacks, but it would be random hits on anything in the general area.

People with no discipline at all would hit trees, rocks, and sometimes their companions when using this skill. Patrick had been practicing, and not only could he land all his hits on the same target, but on a certain area on the target. He let all his mental energy become focused on the heart of the dragon and ran forward for the kill.

His seventh and final slash actually cut the beast into two pieces, which flew off into the trees from the sheer force. He looked to the person who had been attacked, but she was still huddled in a self-preserving position. Blood freely flowed from her bare arm. She placed a hand to her armlet and touched a green materia. "Cu—cu..." she stuttered.

Patrick kneeled beside her. "Shh..." He raised his spear. "White Wind," he said. A green, soothing breeze flowed from the tip of his weapon and enveloped them both. When the air cleared, the girl had him in a tight embrace.

"Umm, you're welcome?"

The girl released him and he finally got a good look at her.

"Zuri! What the _hell_?"

"I don't know where to start."

A protective anger surged into him. "You could have died just now!"

Though she was still not over the fright of the dragon, she met his eye calmly. "I'd rather die out here than just be shipped off to Wutai like an infant. Besides," she continued, "I was looking for you."

"Me? For all you knew, I could be anywhere now."

"I know. But you'd probably be in your 'special place.'" She pulled the sketchpad out of her knapsack. "You shouldn't leave maps to your hideout in the middle of nowhere unless you want someone to find it."

"You were the one in my room tonight!"

She nodded. "Duh. I'm wearing your weapons, armor, and materia."

He scrutinized her appearance. "Where'd you get the clothes?"

"Your sister."

Raising an eyebrow, Patrick grinned. "Really!"

"I left gil to pay for what I took, and an apology note."

"You shouldn't have. Those pants don't fit her, she thinks that sweater makes her look flat, and she hates those shoes."

"This sweater makes her look _flat_?" Azura was shocked.

"She doesn't have the shape you do, Zuri." He blushed. "Not that I spend all my time looking at your shape." (Time to change the subject.) "What are your plans?"

"Step one was to find you."

"Which you managed to do pretty quickly _and_ successfully." He smiled. "What after that?"

Azura looked at Patrick and took his hand. "Stay with you."

He did not allow another word to pass through her lips before he took her into his arms and held her close. "Is that what you really want?"

"I like being with you. When I'm with anybody else, I still feel...alone."

"Then we can keep each other from being all alone." He smiled.

She met his eyes and nodded. "_That's_ 'the plan.'"

* * *

_So close, no matter how far_

_Couldn't be much more from the heart_

_Forever trusting who we are_

_And nothing else matters_

_Never opened myself this way_

_Life is ours, we live it our way_

_All these words I don't just say_

_And nothing else matters_

—_Metallica, "Nothing Else Matters"_


	9. Part 3: Worship the Sky - Chapter 9

Part 3— Worship the Sky

.

Chapter 9

.

"Mama? When are they coming?"

Tifa turned to her daughter. "Probably afternoon or early evening." She resumed her preparations on what was to become Raieyana's room.

"So why'd you wake me up at dawn? The weekend is my time off." Marta pouted. "Cosmo Canyon is the only place with year-round classes."

"Well honey, they never farmed here, it wasn't practical. That's how summer vacation started, so the kids could help with chores. Want to quit school and work for the Elders?"

She vehemently shook her head, tossing the long, chestnut-colored curls. "I'd rather go to school twenty-four seven."

"What in the Planet does that mean?"

"All day, every day." She rolled her eyes. "You're dense, Mama."

"Oh yes, quite." Tifa's mahogany eyes sparkled. "Now go get those pillows from downstairs. We want to make Raieyana comfy." A soft sigh escaped her lips after Marta left the room. Bygones being what they were, and the passage of time being so slow, many things had worn down the bitterness that Tifa had held in her heart for Raieyana.

(It's still so hard to think right now that I could be so worried about her. I haven't seen her in years.) A tiny bit of guilt stabbed at her for the jealousy she held within. (Just because Cloud approached her, years back, doesn't mean anything now. It's in the past, and there's not a bit of proof that it existed.)

Settling her feelings with this little thought, she continued to prepare the room. After she finished there, Tifa was going to go down to the cellar the Elders kept and see if there were any herbs that would help Raieyana's condition.

* * *

Lia woke up at the crack of dawn in her usual cheerfulness. (This is such a lovely day.) A sudden thought struck her. (I haven't seen Ray in about a week or so. I think I'll make my way over to her house. I know she'll be up, exercising and thinking up new moves to use on her trainees.)

She dressed quickly and threw down the slight pang inside her, telling her that something was...wrong. (I miss the good ol' days when Ray and the kids lived here with us. I knew we'd eventually outgrow that, but it was still loads of fun.) She lifted up her head, good spirits overtaking her again. (At least she's still close.)

.

Lia climbed up the ladder with ease and prepared to knock on Raieyana's door. She was startled as it opened and Reeve stepped out, holding his wife in his arms. "Reeve?"

"Lia!" Reeve was thrown off slightly by the impromptu visit. "I'd invite you in, but we're on our way out." A pause. "Ray's not well."

"I can see that," she said, concerned. "Is there anything I can do?"

Vincent stepped out to see what the voices were. "Lia." His eyes glowed a mellow red. "There is one thing. An intruder entered this house night before last. We do not know who he is, but he was a trespasser. He met a most...his end was not good." Hints of Yuffie's conversational skills were now second nature to him. "I can trust you will arrange a _quiet_ cremation. For Raieyana's sake?"

Lia nodded in shock. "I have to make a report..." she began.

"There are two witnesses. You see Ray."

Some slight hesitation. "Yes."

"And Patrick has fled. Therefore, the report will have to be bare bones until either of the two is here and able to comment." He set down the suitcase he was holding and walked back into the house. "Yuffie?"

"Yes, _darling_?" Her words were iced with irony as she dragged the weapons bag down the stairs. "This is very heavy and unnecessary, you know."

"Are you all ready?"

"Well, Kati, Ishmael, and Sean are already out there. Zuri hasn't answered my knocking on her door. I guess you pissed her off good, huh, honey?"

"She was upset, but I thought she understood. Geez, it's not like if she doesn't answer our knocking, she won't have to go. I always thought she was more mature than that." He shook his head. "Go on ahead with Reeve. I'll deal with her."

She scrutinized her husband. "Sure she doesn't need her mother's touch?"

"Needing you? 'Daddy's Little Girl'? I doubt it."

"Fine then." Yuffie dropped the bag. "_This_ is yours. I'm taking the suitcase. Au revoir for now...that's French."

"I'm aware of that," he said dryly before heading up the stairs to the bedrooms. He found the third door on the right and knocked softly. "Zuri?" (No response.) Two more knocks, rather loud. (Still nothing?) "Zuri!" he said emphatically. "Stop this nonsense!"

At a loss for a moment, he finally resorted to trying the door handle. Surprisingly, it was not locked. He easily swung the door open and prepared to deliver a scathing reprimand to his youngest daughter.

The room was empty, save for a short hand-written note, tacked to the headboard of the bed with two diamond hairpins. Vincent's present to Azura on her sixteenth birthday.

* * *

Patrick could have sworn he had moved to the opposite side of the little room with a blanket, in the most chivalrous move that could be expected. But somehow during the night, Azura had managed to wind up cuddled up next to him. (Great. If anyone finds us out here, we'll look _so_ innocent.)

The real question he then asked himself was how innocent he needed to be. (I've been exiled from home, and the two people who cared enough to possibly defend me are... Well, my mother isn't well and Azura ran away...to me. So it will be my word against whatever word there is, and my word just works out to sound so correct.) He snorted in annoyance. (How am I ever supposed to win? I never get praised when I do the right thing, and although I'm scolded whenever I err, the attitude that I am presented with is... Bad is the only thing I'm expected to be capable of. Talk about a self-fulfilling prophecy.)

He shook himself, trying to forget the eeriness of the dream he had the night before. (Another dream about those damn doors. More scenes of the supposed "truth." Shit, if anyone could get into my mind though, it seems like the perfect equation to try and drive me crazy.) He sighed. (And tonight's scene...your father telling your mother that he wants to abort you.) He tried to ignore these scenes, but they all took place in places he knew, and the people involved looked the right age for the timeframe involved.

(_"Am I correct in assuming you're not going to have this baby? There's no way I'd consider letting you take the risks of childbirth again...for Cloud Strife's child."_) The presence in the dream had done a slick editing job with the words that had come out of Reeve's mouth. Patrick mused over the repercussions of this statement. (Does this mean Cloud Strife is my father, not Reeve? And if this is true...was the first dream a scene of...of...) He bowed his head; he was not going to allow his mind to finish the thought that a scene so violent was the event of his conception.

* * *

"All she left was this." Vincent handed Yuffie the note. "I checked the rest of the house. She took a few pieces of clothing from Aeris, but left enough money to cover it. I have no idea how much Patrick took with him when he left, but I figure she at least took a weapon and some materia from his things. She left the materia case open on his bed."

This exchange was on the deck of the Highwind, which continued to hover above Undor-Hai, delaying departure until this newest crisis was dealt with.

Yuffie failed at her attempt to hold back a sniffle. "Just what did you _say_ to her last night, Vince?"

"I was merely telling her our decision about how to help Raieyana when she interrupted me. I did make a remark after that about how she was still not ready to handle things."

"Honestly Vincent, is anyone ever ready to handle a guy's head rolling around in the living room?"

"Well we decided to take her back to Wutai. You didn't argue with that decision, and you let me go talk to her. So don't try and tell me I was wrong in the way I handled her."

"Back in the days when we were her age, we were forced to handle many things. Maybe we have been babying her a bit, but it was only because we _could_. I just wish I could tell her that."

"Instead, she resents us for seemingly giving her special treatment. But I'm afraid."

"How far could she have gotten in the dark?"

"I looked in the woods nearby for any sort of trail. I found none. It would be our luck that the one kid that decides to run away untrained would be a prodigy at remaining undetectable."

.

"Are you two done spouting shit, or can I make a suggestion?" demanded Cid.

"We're done," said Vincent tersely.

"You guys have two choices. Go with us or stay here and look for Azura. You had a good reason for joining in the trip here, for without Reeve and the rest you don't got nowhere to stay. If you stay here to look for her, you'll have the chance of an icicle in hell because you don't know the area much better than you know what the Ruby Weapon's asshole looked like."

The two looked at each other. In any other circumstance, this colorful remark by Cid would have been rather amusing. But in this case...

"Cid, our youngest daughter who knows absolutely nothing about fighting is wandering the woods out here. Hardly anyone lives here, and everyone knows there are still plenty of monsters." Vincent's cold glare would have been the envy of any villain.

"Well, not to sound heartless, but if you think she's so helpless, you're gonna be out there searching for a corpse."

Yuffie was quiet. "My baby's out there all alone." Suddenly, a bit of insight came to her. "Unless she somehow managed to find Patrick." She turned her brightening eyes to Vincent.

"If that were the case, she'd be better off trying her luck with the monsters." Pocketing the precious hairpins, he turned to descend the ladder. "I'm going to inform Lia that we also need her assistance for a search of the area. We'll leave for the Canyon when I return."

The light went out. Yuffie mournfully turned to Cid. "If that kid is half as bad as Vince says he is, it's only because of what Vincent thinks. Not in spite of it."

* * *

Azura opened her sleepy eyes at about seven in the morning. Yawning, she blinked the sleep away and became aware that Patrick was already up and dressed, cleaning his spear.

"Mornin' sleepyhead," he said. He looked at his weapon. "I could swear I cleaned this last night, but it's so hard to see dark blue dragon blood in the dead of night." Holding it up into the sunlight, he nodded in approval at the sparkling of the clean spearhead.

She laughed softly, then thought of something. "Is mine dirty?"

"Did you hit the dragon?"

A tint of red crept into her cheeks. "No, I didn't get the chance."

"Oh. It looked kinda hurt when it was bent over you."

"Well I _did_ cast a Poison spell on it..." She smiled a little. "I thought it would die."

Patrick nodded. "Bio3 usually kills a Sapphire Dragon. You're probably not as strong as me in magic power, though. Can I see your materia for that?"

She slipped the orb from her armlet and tossed it to him.

He studied the glowing sphere for a moment, then cocked his head in confusion. Briefly glancing at Azura, he stepped outside onto the uncovered part of the platform, which served as a porch. Slipping it into his armlet, he concentrated on a deer about twenty feet away. "Bio3!"

Nothing happened. Azura stepped outside. "What are you doing?"

"Testing something." He tried again, but this time went for a weaker variety of the poison magic. "Bio2!" Nothing. He sighed and waved a hand half-heartedly. "Bio."

The deer fell to its knees and began wheezing for dear life. Azura gasped and yelled "White Wind!" The green breeze surrounded her and transferred her good energy back to the deer, which hopped up and ran away as fast as its legs would move. She turned to Patrick. "What in the Planet where you testing?"

He removed the orb and returned it to her. "The more a materia is used, the stronger the spell that could be cast."

"I know that Pat, I'm not completely dense." She seemed offended. "I know this materia wasn't much, but it was the only Poison one I could find."

"Just hear me out, Zuri. I mastered my Poison materia yesterday. You know that when this happens, it splits and a brand new materia is created, right?"

She nodded.

"When I saw the amount of damage you had given to that dragon, I thought nothing of it. Then I saved you and I thought to myself that I had accidentally taken my new materia and you had the master one. So I tested yours...and it's the new one."

"What's the big deal, Pat?"

"You didn't cast a Bio3 spell that was slightly weaker than mine. You cast a level one poison spell that is stronger than anything I could cast at that level."

Her eyes widened and she shook her head. "That's impossible. I've never used materia before last night."

"And you just saved that deer's life. I can't even save an animal that small that was attacked with a poison spell..." He looked at her. "Zuri, you have a great gift. I was worried before about how you would hold up."

"Hold up?"

"Yes." He took her hand. "If you are serious about staying with me, I'm going to have to teach you to fight. I have a feeling no one is going to be too happy with me any more. I'm not safe from attack, and neither are you."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

.

_There had always been an unspoken law in the village of Igmar-Boleyn. After a couple had been given to each other in betrothal and marriage, all the other prospective suitors were to give them a gift and forget any hard feelings. The Cetra were a people of peace and respect; rare was the time a man was bitter over losing a lady to a rival and, in those times, it was ever rarer for him to show it._

_Riana was the daughter of the Cetra leader, a beautiful maiden who had a very close link with the Planet. Despite these obvious gifts, she also had such a sparkling personality that she would have been sought after even if she had been a lowly peasant. There were few peasants in the egalitarian community, for the only ones were those who wished to be._

_The day came when the girl and her father had decided on the best person for her to marry and the announcement was made. Riana would be married to a young hunter named Kal'od. Thus, the ritual gifts were given by the spurned suitors and life returned to normalcy._

_At about this time, something massive fell from the skies near the village. The elders conferred and decided that a spy should be sent to go check out the crater and make sure everything was all right. The man chosen for this job was named Reiven, who had been one of Riana's suitors and had still remained a close friend._

_He had kept his severe jealousy of Kal'od deep inside his heart and it had begun to fester. So as he walked through the snowy drifts and climbed up the cliff created by the impact, all that was on his mind was how much Kal'od did not deserve to have Riana as his wife. He peered over the edge of the cliff. (Gaia's Cliff) he thought to himself (like the mother of the Planet.) This poetic, if unfitting, name stuck with the landmark for millennia. Down in the deep crater was a large, glowing pod, unlike anything Reiven had ever seen. He debated for a moment, then slowly climbed down the edge and crept towards it._

_As he approached the object, a small hatch opened on it and a beautiful woman stepped out. "Hello Reiven," she said._

_He was startled by her knowledge of his name. "How do you know that is what I am called?"_

_"I have been watching you ever since I arrived. I have seen your life and your problems. I can see that your village does not appreciate you as it should."_

_Always a bit conceited, he tossed his head at the things she said. He often had the same ideas himself. "I guess you're right. They sent me here to check on what landed."_

_"They sent you because they thought it was dangerous. They are jealous of what you are capable of, and that's why you were not allowed to have Riana."_

_The glowing embers within him surged in a new flame. "You knew of that?"_

_"Yes. I have a power that is greatly beyond those of you Cetra. I see some of this power in you. The reason why the elders fear you is because they do not want the Cetra to lose their power over the humans." She laid a hand on his arm. "I can help you, though."_

_"Can you?" He looked at her. "Help me get what I want?"_

_She nodded. "Together, we can be most powerful."_

_Reiven smiled. "What is your name?"_

_"Jenova."_

_He should have noticed, but he was too blinded by the power she held before him. Her name spelled out disaster. In the Cetra tongue, _Jenn o' Vah_ means "destruction from the skies."_

_

* * *

_

_He had returned to the village with the visitor, saying she was from a Cetra clan on a far off continent. Her people were much more advanced than the Boleynian clan and this woman had much to teach them. The elders were cautious after hearing the innuendo in her name, but eventually allowed Jenova to stay with them. She was an eager member of the community, learning their rituals and customs. Her beauty earned her suitors of her own very quickly, but she sent them on her way. She had been betrothed long ago to a special man, she explained._

_Reiven's rise to power took place slowly. He began to perform small miracles, and no one realized this was due to Jenova's aid. He was very confused by her instructions, but she was correct. Every time he let her use her strange instruments to place her own flesh inside him, along with Lifestream, he became more and more powerful. Soon, the village had two factions. One who were loyal to the old chief, and the old ways that existed before Jenova had came to live there, and the faction which followed Reiven and his doctrine of divine right._

_He said that ruling the village was his divine right, and that he ought to have been given that right by receiving Riana's hand in marriage. Since the chief did not allow that, he was defying Reiven's divine right. This angered his followers, but Reiven insisted they have patience. Those who were set against him would soon be punished._

_The next time a group of protestors came to visit him, they soon developed lesions all over their body. This group soon died from the mysterious disease. The other members of the village were consumed by fear. What had they done to anger the Planet so, that people who disagreed with one man would be condemned to die?_

.

_Jenova came to him one night, very late. "I trust that you are enjoying your rise to power," she said._

_Reiven bowed. "Yes. Is there something you ask of me?"_

_"No. I am happy in my simple life here. The place where I used to live, I had much responsibility. I enjoy doing what I wish."_

_"And as long as I live, I will make sure you do whatever you wish, my Deliverer."_

_"I was hoping you would think that way. I need to ask you a favor. I'll explain as well as I can."_

_"Anything you wish from me will be done."_

_"I have told you before that I come from another star, and this gives me the chance to see things that your eyes cannot."_

_"Yes, Jenova." He studied her face._

_"I will live on this Planet for many years, happy and peaceful, lest for one man. This man will have the ability to destroy me completely, obliterating my remains to the ends of the universe, to prevent my happiness."_

_"That is horrible! Let me kill this man!"_

_Jenova smiled cruelly. "The man is not a man yet. He is not even born yet. The woman you used to love, Riana, is heavy with child. Her child shall be the one to kill me. This is why the chief picked Riana to lay with Kal'od. He knew their offspring would be enough to destroy me." She concentrated and squeezed one tear from her eye._

_"Dearest one." Reiven placed a protective hand on her shoulder. "Do not worry about this. I shall prevent this. I will make sure Riana does not have that child."_

_"That is not enough. She must not be allowed to be with child again. The danger is too great, she must be destroyed." Jenova stared deeply into his eyes. "The village must be destroyed."_

_

* * *

_

_Jenova sighed, dropping Reiven's head to the ground. (I guess it was too much to expect the mortal not to care about his village.) The jealous man had been able to drive the sword into the woman he had desired so dearly, but could not give up on his hopes to reign over the entire village._

_(So, I was forced to use the cells I had placed inside him... Make him submit to my will.) Reiven, under her manipulation, had destroyed his village anyway, just for the sole purpose of torturing him. (My puppet, yet he got to see and hear everyone he had known cursing his name as they died, and died horribly.)_

_He had ran to her, weeping and screaming, telling her that he didn't need her help anymore. ("Get out of my life, out of my head!" were his exact words, I believe. It's not my fault he can't follow directions.) She kicked at his head. (Besides, I was getting annoyed with him, anyway. I only used him because it was so much easier for him to go kill the anointed child than for me to.)_

_She shuddered at the thought of the child's name. The child who would now never be born..._never_. Pa'at Rich, son of the sun._

.

.

Azura was thinking about the dream she had the night before. She saw the events through Jenova's eyes, and the scenes had terrified her. She wondered if her father had dreams like this. Did her sister and brother have dreams like this?

She forced herself to concentrate again on Patrick's instructions on staff use. (Does Patrick have dreams like this?)

"Pay attention, Zuri!"

"I—I'm sorry. I was just...I had a nightmare last night, and it's hard to get out of my head." The most disturbing thing to her was the familiarity of all of the names involved. (I don't get it. Even if everything that happened in that dream was true, it happened two thousand years ago. What does that have to do with now?) There was nothing in her brain to tell her the truth though, which was that her dream had a _lot _to do with the present.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

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Aeris knelt beside her mother and prayed.

Reeve turned his head and walked out of the medical bay of the Highwind. Well, it was the Highwind II, and, in the words of Cid, "bigger and badder than the original." Since the first Highwind was obsolete and retired now, pretty much everyone referred to this as the Airship or the Highwind, to which Cid would demand "it's the Highwind _II_, dammit, say _two_!"

(Full speed ahead, to Cosmo Canyon. But is this the place to find the answers?) Something deep inside him told him that what he ought to be doing was to take his children to the City of the Ancients and see if they could hear the voices of the Planet. He stopped this thought, though. (Ray never heard the voices. How could my children? The blood of the Cetra has become too dilute.)

The blonde stood up and exited after her father. "Dad. We have to do something after we get Mom to the Canyon."

"What do you suggest?" There was a strain in his eyes that Aeris had never seen before. She had been too young during the time Raieyana was pregnant with Patrick, and Raieyana's death was years before her birth.

"I need to find Patrick." She looked at him. "How could you let him go like that? It's obvious he has all the answers to these questions. Besides, if it comes to a last resort such as that...if anyone could hope to get inside Mom's mind, it's him."

"What?" The tone in Reeve's voice told Aeris she was treading on thin ice.

Emerald eyes filled with tears and she fled from his presence, crying all the way to the bridge.

He turned and slammed a fist into the wall, Barret-style. (Dammit all to hell.)

.

"I'll be the first to admit that I do not live with Patrick on a full time basis, but the last I saw of him was not too terrible. Circumstances are hard enough without you transferring your harsh energies to your other two children." Red XIII emerged from between the supply bags where he had been napping.

"You don't know him at all," muttered Reeve.

"And do you, Reeve?"

"I saw him the day after he was born. Placed into the hands of a crazed madman, while I strained every muscle in my body and every bit of energy I possessed, trying to rescue him. I risked my life for his."

"That in itself does not equate to knowing the person at all." He frowned. "I just do not understand how you can feel such a way to your own flesh and blood. I denied my father, but that was just because I did not understand his actions."

"You are correct about one thing, Red. I do not understand Patrick's actions." There was a sudden fury in Reeve's eyes. "But I will not be chided for denying my own offspring. Especially when Patrick is not my son."

Red XIII watched Reeve storm to the observation deck. (With this startling revelation, Reeve's behavior begins to fall into place. But the problem is that his actions are in no way beneficial to Raieyana. No matter who Patrick's father was, he is still Raieyana's son. She may need him.)

* * *

Azura grunted as she hit the ground again.

"Zuri?"

She shook her head. "I'm fine." She hopped up again and readied the long stick she had been using as a practice staff.

Patrick twirled his own stick and took on a defensive battle stance. "Okay then, come at me this time."

She bit her lip and concentrated. A few steps toward him, a couple swings, and...Patrick had her up against him, with a move that would have placed his staff against her throat in battle. Her own stick was lying on the ground. (Damn it.) Then suddenly, she sensed an uneven balance of weight. (A-ha!) She leaned to the right, and before Patrick could compensate, wrenched the stick from his hands.

A blow against his lower legs landed him on his back. He looked up to see the end of the stick pointed at his throat and Azura grinning broadly. "Okay," he said with a smile, "your point."

The smile grew wider and she stepped back just a bit, relaxing her stance.

He flashed her a mischievous look and grabbed the end of her stick, pulling her down. She landed in a heap on top of him.

"Hey! That's cheating!" she protested.

"I know," he replied, tossing the stick aside. "It's break time."

"Oh really!" She was indignant. "Well, I think I'll spend my break pouting that you just made me fall for _no_ purpose."

"Come on, Zuri, I was _playing_," he whined. Scooting up next to her, he gave her puppy-dog eyes. "If you say you forgive me, I'll let you win next round."

"You'd let me _win_ when I'm _training_?" Azura added a bit of drama to her speech and turned her head with a "hmph." Before Patrick could get out another pitiful plead to her, she turned quickly to face him. Quickly pressing her lips to his, she kissed him–hard.

His eyes were full of surprise. "I think I'll just let you win things on your own from now on. I like the results."

There was a sparkle of extra confidence in her eyes as she smiled warmly at him.

.

They were interrupted by the roar of a large mutant beast. (Shit) thought Patrick (of all the times for one of these to show up.) "It's a Ruby Dragon!" he shouted to Azura, tossing the real staff at her. "Stay back and just work spells." He took a pair of sabres from his hip sheaths. "Come to papa!" he yelled at the dragon as he touched the 4x cut materia.

Azura stood back, readying a Bio spell. She found that the longer she prepared to cast, the more energy flowed into her. (Or is the energy _growing_ inside me?)

Patrick continued his slice-and-dice action until the boost added by the materia began to wear down. (I got in there nine times.) He was amazed. (Over double what's advertised isn't a bad deal at all.) He looked to his partner, eager to see what kind of magic she had in store.

She hopped forward a bit and raised her arms, palm outstretched in the direction of the dragon's head. "Bio!" A torrent of bright green energy soared towards the dragon.

(Thank god her aim is true.) He could feel the sickening poison in the air itself as the thick stream passed close to him. The dragon roared in agony and tried to counter attack, but failed. The only thing it could do was muster up a meager Cure for itself.

(That won't help you.) Azura shook her head and decided to put another spell in the works. She twirled her staff, pointing the Lightning materia in the dragon's direction.

Patrick noticed that she was preparing to cast again. "Want to try and finish 'em off yourself?" he asked, half-jokingly. He knew that the Ruby Dragon was the strongest little enemy around, and it would take about fifty turns between himself and Azura to bring the beast to its knees.

She closed her eyes in concentration, knowing that the third level Bolt spell would take much more energy than the dinky poison. She could almost feel the electric particles moving between her body and her weapon, surging into her more and more. For a moment, she was scared. Patrick had told her that casting with a materia in your weapon meant using the weapon to guide it. But she also remembered how she had to stop touching the materia in her armlet to direct the spell, when it was in her armlet. So she dropped the staff.

(Uh oh.) His hand inched to his 4x cut materia, hoping that Azura had only had an accident and was otherwise okay. Then he stopped in his tracks. (She's still _casting_?)

Her eyes opened and glowed green like the energy contained in the crystals. Spasms of electric power shot from her outstretched hand and the Ruby Dragon went into series of convulsions. One upon the other, which were never going to end, as long as the spell poured from Azura. The glow in her eyes faded as the spell subsided, but the dragon was now a steaming, charred carcass.

"Zuri?"

"I got him!" She jumped up and down with joy. Hopping over her weapon, she wrapped her arms around Patrick in a tight hug. "This is already paying off!"

"Ack...Zuri, wait a sec." He wiped his bloody sabres on the grass and sheathed them. (I got the best materia prodigy since the legendary Sephiroth on my hands, and we're hiding out in the middle of the woods. And she thinks it's all due to _my_ training?) He stepped over to the body of the dragon. "This is a Ruby Dragon," he said in his best teacher voice. "It usually takes me about twenty minutes to kill one of these things, unless I get annoyed and use a summon like Ramuh. Then it takes ten."

Azura giggled. "Stop trying to win me over by doing the opposite of bragging."

"To anyone but you, those stats _would_ be bragging."

"Did I do the 'amazing materia' thing again?" She looked confused. "But I didn't even cast it like you told me to."

"Never mind for today. Time will tell us what your strongest level is. Training's over for today. You look tired."

She walked over and picked up her staff, then skipped over back to Patrick. Spontaneity took over and she grabbed his hand.

He smiled at her and they walked back. Together.

* * *

(_"The time is upon you. Get up, Cloud."_

Can't you just leave me alone?

_"I wish I could, but something happened to you a long time ago. In a time before your time, the natural order of things was altered. The destiny of the present generation was altered, in turn, to correct this mistake."_

If you know so much about things, why don't you just go fix them yourself?

_"Only one soul per generation is given to the Planet to fix such things."_

And it's me, I suppose.

"_No. It's your son."_

Patrick?

_"That's his name this time. It has been other things before. His destiny is twofold. To destroy the 'Calamity from the Skies...'"_

Jenova? We destroyed her.

_"As long as her cells reside in any human body, she is not truly gone. And until Patrick defeats her, she will never truly die. If Patrick succeeds this time, the Jenova line will die out."_

I will be normal? All the ex-Soldiers...their children...we'll all be normal?

_"Yes. Even though Hojo used altered Jenova cells in his experimentation, they are still truly part of Jenova enough for her to regenerate herself."_

You say "this time." How could Patrick have failed before now? He is only fourteen.

_"The true line of Jenova has extended for millennia. In every incarnation of you, you have created an incarnation of Patrick as your son. This is the first generation in which the 'Son of the Sun' has survived to be born and lived through infancy. His birth signaled the Reunion."_

Jenova gathered her minions to destroy him?

_"Yes. But she underestimated Raieyana and overestimated Hojo. It is time you understood the truth about Patrick. The Jenova/Hojo cells inside you tried to prevent your desire for Raieyana, but your desire for Aeris overrode that, and you wished to be with her anyway. Even though the same consciousness had practically no power over Raieyana, it hardened her heart to you."_

Jenova made Raieyana dislike me?

_"Yes. All to prevent Patrick's birth."_

If those powers did not want me to have a child with Raieyana, then how the hell was I forced into...into...

_"The intentions of the Planet marred by the desire of Jenova caused that. Raieyana was to have been deep in sleep, and you were supposed to have been led by Aeris...in a dream. She would have been reconciled with Reeve, her lover, and no one would be wiser...but Jenova..."_

She made me violent to Raieyana after she used all her power to make Raieyana awaken at my presence.

_"Yes. For even though Jenova could not prevent the conception, she thought she could prevent Raieyana from trusting you. Prevent Raieyana from wanting the child, loving the child. An attempt to make the destruction of the child as easy as possible."_

But we were too strong. We were all too strong.

_"You must go now, Cloud. The last efforts of Jenova have begun. Raieyana has finally made a concession to the mind control, after a shattering event. Reeve, Vincent, and others have hardened their heart to the anointed child. United you should stand... It is your job to reconcile things. Cloud, once you divided. Arise. Tomorrow you shall unify."_)


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

.

(_It was a field. She was all alone in a field. Poppies and irises grew as wild as dandelions there, and a warm breeze was always blowing._

_The Promised Land had been the only place where Riana had been permitted to hold her son. Every time the chance had come to see him on the Planet, the attempts had been thwarted. Riana sighed. Pa'at Rich did not even have a face to call his own. Never in any incarnation had he ever lived to see the light of the star...the star which his bright soul was named for._

_A hand was placed on her shoulder. She looked into the eyes of Reiven. "I'm sorry for the last time."_

_"You are sorry for every time. It saddens me that we have to live the same roles over and over."_

_"We were told in the beginning that our quest would save the humans on this Planet. We wanted to aid them. And now, it is also for redemption on the joys that she stole from our first lives, so long ago."_

_"Would you have said yes if you knew you had to be the adversary to the _Plan_ in every incarnation?"_

_Reiven was quiet. "Would you have said yes if you knew you would never live to see the _Son of the Sun_ born?"_

_"It must succeed sometime. The Masters would not have begun the _Plan_ otherwise."_

_"If they would only let you and Kal'od return to the Planet without me next time..."_

_"They know better than us. And you should know by now that it is not the way. Nothing can remain unchecked. Not even the parents of the anointed child. They must have a foe."_

_"In this respect, sometimes I think the Masters are fools."_

_"They just have absolute discrimination. Perhaps they mean to teach the both humans and us, the Cetra, a lesson. I have learned much already."_

_"What have you learned, Riana? How much pain have you had to bear? They never told you that all the failure would haunt you, even beyond the physical realm."_

_"I have learned that the prevention of the _Plan_ comes in many shapes and forms. Through lust for power, or even through the times when you have become my lover. We easily become misguided in our shadowy mortal coil."_

_"I hope we soon learn what form the implementation of this _Plan_ comes in. The next incarnation will be hard. The Masters need us to fulfill the Aniz-Mi'ar prophecy."_

_"Khazed," Riana murmured. "The beloved sacrifice. So you shall be my lover next time. That makes me happy. I mourn for the lives I spent hating you."_

_"I mourn for the lives we failed."_

_"Where's Kal'od?"_

_"Arguing with the Masters." Reiven shook his head. "I gave that up centuries ago."_

_"Whatever could he be arguing about this time?"_

_"He disagrees with their plans to send me first, then him, then you. He thinks we have a better chance of success if he is the eldest in this incarnation."_

_"We never succeeded when he was or when he wasn't. It matters little what we want, for the Masters set up lives that we ourselves could not plan."_

_"True." He took her hand. "I go ten years before you this time, and the time fast approaches. Wish me luck, oh mother of the son of the sun?"_

_"May you fail as my adversary. Let the _Plan_ succeed. For my life from two thousand years ago. For the innocence _Jenn o' Vah _removed from the Cetra, and removed from all mankind."_)

.

Raieyana stirred on the cot in the medical bay as the Airship landed at Cosmo Canyon. It was time to try and unlock her from her frozen state.

* * *

Marlene walked up to the entrance of the Alcor building. Although she was rather disappointed that her visit with her family had been cut short by Raieyana's emergency, she saw her early return as an opportunity to prove herself to the C.E.O., Yorlain Armstrong.

Walking past the security desk towards the elevator, she murmured a greeting to the guard. She didn't need to produce any I.D.; all the guards knew her well by now.

A terse voice barked an order to her. "Walk back here slowly. Keep your hands where I can see them."

"What is the matter? I am Marlene _Wallace_!" She glared at the guard. "If you hinder me too long, I'll complain to the C.E.O.!"

"The C.E.O. eh?" The guard gave a knowing look to his partner. "I bet this one is on the list."

"What list?"

The guard grabbed her arm and slapped her across the face. "Shut up. Some people have been upset with the wimpy way this company runs. Yorlain was disposed of."

"Di—disposed?"

"I found it." The guard with the list looked up. "Marlene Wallace, level 4 employee."

(Damn straight.) "Now will you get your _fucking_ hands off of me?"

The only response she received was the slapping of handcuffs against her wrists. "Level 4. Close to the C.E.O. Our boss needs you honey, for 'observation.'"

Alcor had originally set up shop in the former Shinra building in Junon. Even after the fire damaged the building, they decided to stay there. It was sturdy, after all. The upper levels, including the prison, had always been off-limits, with only Reeve and Reno, later Yorlain, having access to them.

Someone had opened up the prison, obviously, for this was where Marlene was taken. Something had gone wrong at Alcor. Really wrong.

* * *

"Okay, kids, this is a serious problem. A girl went missing last night. We need to issue a manhunt of all the surrounding area." Legolas looked at the young warriors gathered around him. "We also have reason to believe Patrick may be hiding out in the forest, and we need to bring him here."

"Could you please not call us kids?" asked Benjamin, a skilled archer of twenty years.

"Sorry. It's hard to see Danny sitting there and not say 'kids.'"

Daniel frowned. "Call me Dan, Daniel, or nothing, okay?" He had spent eighteen years of his life fighting off the nickname Danny, he believed.

"Any other _demands_ before I continue?" asked Legolas, amused.

He shook his head. "Why do we need to bring Patrick in?"

Taking a deep breath, Legolas addressed the group. "I suppose I can't keep this from being put out in the open. There was a trespasser at Raieyana's house night before last, and we have reason to believe Patrick was involved in his murder. Now, we're not going to put him on trial, as long as both he and Raieyana can attest to it being a defensive action."

"If he ran away, then it probably wasn't defensive," commented Benjamin.

"The decision for that is not up to you, to just assume, got it? If you find Patrick, we would like for you to ask him to return. If not, cast a status spell on him and drag him back here. Understand?"

"What if he uses force?"

"Then you have permission to subdue him." Legolas peered at the young man. "Is that what you're asking for? A chance to attack him? You will not get it. At least not from the community, Lia, or myself. He is a citizen just like you."

"Child of outsiders," he muttered.

Legolas grabbed him by the shoulder and locked eyes. "If anything serious should happen to him, his blood is on _your _hands. Get the picture?"

"Whatever." He broke eye contact. "What about the girl?"

Legolas stepped back. "Her name is Azura Valentine. She's about five feet three inches tall, a hundred pounds. Long black hair, gray eyes. She's at least half Wutaian."

"That's _Zuri_ out in the woods by herself?" said Daniel in amazement.

He nodded.

Benjamin yawned and prepared to stand up. "What should we do when we find her corpse?"

"When you find her," said Legolas sternly, "you bring her back here. You know that. Now I have a map here. I divided the terrain into ten parts. Each part has a pair of names on it. The part you scout out has your name on it, obviously."

"Why can't we just go alone?"

"There are many reasons. Having a support for battles is one of them. Another would be for the scenario where Azura is found, but too injured to be moved. One will stay with her and the other would return here. Also, if Patrick becomes aggressive, I would hope two of you grown warriors could subdue the boy."

"Great idea," he said sarcastically.

Legolas looked up. "Are there any questions from those of you with slightly smaller mouths than Ben?"

Eighteen warriors shook their heads.

"So everyone is clear with their assignments?"

A soft chorus of "yes sir's" met his ear. The warriors prepared to head out to their assigned territory.

"After four hours, report back here. You will be given a meal, and if nothing has turned up, return for another patrol after you've rested." Legolas watched them head towards the door. "Oh, and one more thing."

Twenty faces turned back in his direction. "Good luck." They each nodded silently and headed out of the room.

He sat down in one of the chairs, tired. (How did I ever let Lia coerce me into playing 'General' to the troops?)


	13. Part 4: Time Out of Mind - Chapter 13

Part 4— Time Out of Mind

.

Chapter 13

.

"This is something I have to do." Aeris stared at all the faces in the room. "Doesn't anyone understand?"

"I do," said Tifa. "That you want to do this out of concern for your mother, but seeing Patrick probably wouldn't be the best thing for her right now."

"How do _you_ know?"

A shocked silence hung over the room. Red XIII chose his words cautiously. "Riss...? Tifa has studied for a great period of time..."

"And she has told us she has practically no idea what can be done for my mother. I think my hunch would prove more accurate, considering I've got Jenova in me, and I'm part Cetra." She glared at Tifa. "I have more insight than she'll ever have, and everyone's fighting _my _ideas, not hers!"

Ishmael stepped toward his sister. "Aeris, Dad says..."

"He's walking around like his own son is the ultimate spawn of darkness! I don't give a shit what he says about this anymore!"

"You know it hurts him to see Mom like this."

"And he's venting that pain out on our brother. God, Ishmael, you know Patrick would never raise a hand to her. He might have the potential to kill everyone else on the Planet, but he'd protect Mom. Until it drove him crazy. Holy shit, does _that_ concept sound familiar or is it just me?"

"You don't need to curse at us to make your point," said Kati, half-defensively. She was holding Ishmael's hand and planned to back him all the way on the decision he made about this.

"No I don't. Not to prove my point, anyway." Aeris lifted her head. "It's how I vent _my_ pain. And look, no one gets exiled in my method."

.

They were interrupted as Marta trotted into the room. "Reeve, Vincent, and Cid are coming back from the Airship. They have some news."

Tossing her head, Aeris glanced around the room. "Bring it on," she whispered.

The three men entered the room with grim looks on their faces.

"What is it?" asked Barret, catching their mood.

"As you know," said Reeve, "I gave up running the operation of Alcor years ago. Well...it appears a few people had a problem with the way my C.E.O. was running things. There has been a takeover of Alcor, and many of the top employees, including Yorlain, have disappeared."

"What do ya mean by top employees?" asked Barret carefully.

"My informant barely got out of Junon with his own freedom. Not much is known yet, but..." He looked at the older man. "Barret, no one knows what happened to Marlene. She was a member of the executive board, so it's very likely the people considered her an enemy."

"What th' hell?" Barret stood up, enraged. "I gotta go save Marlene! And rip those muthafuckers a new one!"

"I figured that would be your reaction," said Reeve. "So far, the signs have been good. If these guys were looking for total scare tactics, the bodies of the executives would have turned up somewhere. Since they haven't, my bet is that someone unlocked the upper-level floors that have been off-limits since the building belonged to Shinra."

"What would that mean?" asked Tifa.

"Basically, that there are a bunch of prisoners up in the prison cells that we all remember storming back in our anti-Aysta days."

.

"Oh yeah, them," said Cid. "Stupid Shinra sons-of-bitches. Even now, their buildings haunt us."

Reeve continued. "So, we need some people to go to Junon to check things out. As much as I'd love to stay with Ray, I can't help but think I'd be of some help in the building of my own company."

The room was silent for a moment, then Barret broke in. "Well I be damned if I ain't gonna go help get Marlene's ass out of that prison!"

"I have to stay with Raieyana," said Tifa softly. "I need to do some research on our texts here. I'd love it if you could stay and help, Red."

He nodded his affirmation.

Marta looked at her mother. "Can I go to Junon?"

"No honey. You don't know how to fight."

She pouted. "That's cause you wouldn't let me learn."

"I'll go." Ishmael looked at his father. "You'll need some young blood to add speed to the battles you might have."

"Me too." Kati wasn't about to be left behind by her fiance. (Well, we _are_ engaged, even if we haven't gotten the chance to tell anybody else. So there.)

Vincent was deep in thought. "Do you need me? For I'd rather stay here and look in on Ray's condition. Also, I'd like to be here if any news comes in about Zuri."

"Same here," said Yuffie softly.

"I'll go," said Sean.

"You want to go, too?" She winced. "All my babies will be in danger."

"We're not babies any longer, Mom."

"It just worries me so much I can't stand that I'd have to have you all out at risk...at the same time."

Vincent placed a hand on her shoulder. "If he feels he needs to go, then don't hold him back."

She nodded.

Cid sighed. "And I'm going to be everyone's fucking chauffeur, right?"

Reeve smiled weakly. "Looks like it Cid."

.

Aeris looked up at her father. "I'm going home."

He raised an eyebrow in reply. "Oh you are, huh? Whatever for?"

"To find my broth—"

Reeve interrupted her. "Lia and Legolas sent out many of the best warriors to look for both him and Zuri."

"Did it ever occur to anyone that sending a bunch of soldiers out to find him would make him just a _tad_ defensive? Or does that matter? That this is a time when we need to pull together as a family and he might need someone who cares, not a person presenting him with the cold, metallic gleam of a weapon?"

"He killed a man!"

"Well until Mother is herself enough...to testify to the truth..." Aeris glared at him. "In civilized places, the law is 'innocent until proven guilty.'"

Reeve sighed. "Rissy, sometimes I think he was proven guilty before he was born."

"Perhaps." Her eyes narrowed. "One could say the same thing for you. I believe you killed someone for revenge on your family, long ago, no?"

"It's not the same—"

"You don't _know_ if it's the same! You never gave my brother a fucking chance! And even if I wasn't the most vocal about stating that I cared for him, at least I didn't make him think I hated him. He would not have been forced out the door had I been there. If you even tried," she spat out, "you would have had to kill me first." She started to walk out of the room. "I'm going to the Airship now. If Cid refuses to drop me off at home, I'll walk there on my own damn feet."

The group watched the spirited girl storm out in silence. Red XIII cocked his head to one side. "Such a fiery spirit," he remarked. "Just like her mother."

* * *

Fathoms beneath the surface of Junon bay lays the Underwater Reactor. About twenty years earlier, the reactor had been shut down and sealed off. Alcor kept the submarine fleet to look for more places where Mako broke at the surface, for new Mako springs were the very best place to build their thermal plants.

However, looking at the reactor, one could see that it was alight and buzzing with activity. A black submarine, with an advanced system for jamming the local radar signals, descended down to a small door in the side of the reactor. The airlock.

One man in a uniform walked from the submarine into the reactor. He turned down a hallway and towards the main entrance. The sign on the wall read "Earlham Lab: named in honor of the late, great Lavana Earlham for her contributions to Shinra." The man sighed and thought of his sister. (She was so great at getting ahead in life. She cared about no cause but her own cause. Such a shame she disappeared fourteen years ago with the rest of Shinra. But she left me with access to this hidden building, and the things I wanted most. Hojo's last few samples.)

Dirk walked into his lab and breathed in the filtered air. He was most at home doing intricate work, and he believed his hand was touched by the will of the divine. A sweet precious voice spoke to him, guiding his work to near perfection.

The lab assistants scurried out of his private room as soon as he entered. They knew he must work alone; though they were punished if things were not in top shape, they could only straighten up when Dirk Earlham was not working.

A steady glow in his eye was a tale-tell sign announcing to the Planet that he had once been a Soldier. (But I did not go crazy like the weak failures did so long ago. I remained strong, and soon discovered my true passion. Science.) One day fourteen years ago, the voice had come to him. It gave no orders back then, just gently convinced him that he ought to be a scientist. However, after Shinra was obliterated, there was little demand for experimental science. So Dirk funded his own research, but was discouraged by new laws in every area, prohibiting Mako experimentation.

When he first learned of these laws, he laughed for a long time. (Mako experimentation? I wonder what they would say if they had known then that I had Jenova samples...pure Jenova samples, the ones that Hojo injected himself with long ago.)


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

.

Azura was tending the campfire, watching the setting sun. She glanced at Patrick, who was cleaning some animal or another. The animal which would be their dinner. (I asked him why he had to be hunting. He told me that we might as well leave our supplies to times when we'll need them more.) She thought about how the little animal would have been hopping if not for their needs. (I'd rather save hunting 'til the times when we were starving.)

"Sit tight and watch the pro." Patrick leaned forward, setting up a spit on which to cook the meat. He caught her concerned look. "Wouldn't you rather live off this than rationed power bars?"

She gave him a small smile. "I guess."

"This isn't the life for you...you can't stand causing anything pain."

"But I'm here anyway, so it must be." Her eyes drifted away in thought. "Don't you believe in fate?"

"I suppose I have to. It keeps you from thinking about the grimmer possibilities, when you can just explain life away as doing the things it was meant to do."

"Don't you ever want to think that you might actually have a purpose in life though? Maybe that your specific soul was placed in your specific body for a reason?"

"It seems too well organized. Wouldn't there be no pain, no hurt if that were true?"

"Maybe," Azura said softly, "we feel pain here in order to learn things. Besides, on our Planet, there was a lot that couldn't have been planned. Even if some force controlled our Planet, could they have foreseen Jenova?"

"Does it matter?"

"It matters a lot. Many people live with the effects of her cells inside them. We deal with it okay, probably because we were born this way and our parents who lived with it, had even stronger amounts..."

"Zuri." Patrick looked at her. "I've been having dreams lately that I'm not quite sure I understand. And they scare me, because Mother always said she was told many important things in her dreams. I hope with everything inside me that these are wrong."

"What have you been dreaming of?"

He lowered his voice. "That Cloud Strife is my father...and...and... I'm not positive what else I've seen, but it doesn't look good."

Azura turned the meat roasting on the fire. "Cloud? But from what I've heard, your mom never liked him very much."

"I know." There was something in his voice that made her rethink pressing him for more information.

"That's funny."

"Why's that?"

"Well, Pat." She paused and glanced at him. "I've been having dreams too. About the things that happened after Jenova came to this Planet. They scare me so much..." "They're just dreams, Zuri—"

"But they're so true. So true to life. That's the reason why they frighten me. Not because they're excessively terrible. They are terrible, but only because they easily could have happened."

* * *

"You sure this is the way you want things?"

"Will you disown me or something if I go down there?" Aeris glared at her father.

"He probably won't welcome you even if you find him, you know."

"I have a better chance than you do."

"That's not difficult." Reeve looked down. The Highwind II was floating above the foot of Mt. Crist. Aeris had insisted on climbing up the trail herself, hoping to maybe find a trace of either Patrick or Azura along the way. "It's getting to be dark."

"I've done it in the dark before."

"Well with you mother as she is, I feel extra cautious about you kids—" "Except Patrick."

He ignored her and continued on. "I have to think twice as hard about things as usual, and..." "Dad? I have two comments. One, I'm twenty-one years old, and I am plenty smart enough to make my own decisions. Okay? If I die out here, it's all my fault. Two, I am feeling some strain from Mom's illness also. Maybe she's trying to connect to me or something, I don't know. But I feel responsible for Patrick being out there by himself."

"We're gonna need as much help as we can get in Junon, Riss, if you'd just..."

"If you had any foresight at all, you might have realized that Patrick just might be the kind of person you want on _your_ side in a fight like that. Now you're short two warriors, and two children. Funny how life is."

Reeve sighed deeply. "I just can't get over this change in you. You've always been happy and bubbly like, well like Aeris, your grandmother. But now you sound like..."

She tilted her head to the side and gave him half a smile. "Mom?"

"I always thought that attitude was something she picked up from Tseng."

"I just picked it up from her. She's not able to keep you in line right now, so I've got to do what I need to do. I'll be careful. You know I'm not stupid. But just trust this knowledge that I have deep inside, that we need him. This new game that's going on...it's bigger than what happened in our living room. Bigger than Sephiroth, even if it's going to be far quieter and spill less innocent blood."

"You see that?"

Aeris nodded. "And Patrick is the most important player of all. We could all fall off the face of the Planet tomorrow, but if Patrick remained, it would keep its course."

.

.

_We're all players in a deadly game  
While the world keeps spinning  
Soon none of us remain—  
The darkness keeps on winning_

_Of all the times that come to pass  
Never again shall these stars align  
The most important cycle is the last  
Just takes time to find the sign_

_You can pass the torch along again  
But the runner stays the same  
In this one event, that's always been  
Immortalized—in despair and pain_

* * *

Cloud looked at his surroundings. The haze of dusk held a filter over his vision, but what he could see matched the scene in his mind's eye. He slowly made his way up the trail to Undor-Hai, wondering what the response would be to his return, after he'd seemingly fallen off of the face of the Planet.

(Will they hold me in scorn still? Or will time have dulled the sharp edges of the knife I placed in their memories?) His dreams, if they could be called such, had become over-whelming as of late. He had come to a certain conclusion; that this time, the voice speaking to him was pure and unmarred. It was as if Jenova had given up and concentrated all effort on someone who would actually be somewhere besides Round Island.

The hidden island was the perfect place for Cloud to live away from society. He brought a few of his prize golden chocobos with him, making sure he always had some way back to the mainland. He had only left a few times in the past years; his island way of life was surprisingly self-sufficient.

He was clothed in the tan color which was the trademark of Gysahl fibers. Even though the greens weren't quite the best thing to feed chocobos, the plant was a source of tough fibers which Cloud wove into cloth and made into his shirt and pants. He really only left to buy shoes, and he bought enough of those at a time to last him a good while.

Since he hated the idea of growing old, he practiced his battle techniques still. This habit, along with the Jenova and Mako inside him, had put up a stringent defense against the effects of aging. So while his self-induced solitary confinement had brought more years' worth of wisdom than would be expected, his body was as fit as that of someone who had only neared thirty. There was still a youthful tinge to his face. Maybe the powers-that-be had something in store for him yet, either that, or were allowing him that privilege to compensate for the aged look within his eyes.

As he climbed Mt. Crist with his Ultima Weapon in hand, he couldn't help but remember that day, so long ago, when he had thrown the Lowlellean from the very peak, vowing off violence. (It didn't work out quite as well as I had hoped. I found that I owed it to Raieyana to keep her safe after I hurt her so terribly. I tried to save her from the Turks, from Shelding, but I failed. The only thing I ever accomplished was saving my son.) He bowed his head. (I hope life has dealt him a hand easy enough to where he thinks his life has some worth.)

He continued upward with the trail, unaware that close behind him, the girl with Raieyana's eyes followed. Their goal was very close; they both wanted to find Patrick and tell him what they had felt inside, what their souls told them. But Aeris knew a fact that Cloud did not; that they were heading towards a home abandoned, with the occupants scattered. And that the key to everything was hidden in the forest, cutting himself off from contact, an idea conceived by an attitude remarkably similar to that of his father.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

.

Aeris sighed as the air around her slowly converted to the steady doom of darkness. (I have no idea where to look for him at all. Maybe this plan of mine wasn't quite as well thought out as I thought it was. Back on the Airship, when I could still see the sun.)

She wasn't about to give up, not at all. However, she was beginning to have doubts about whether Patrick was still anywhere near Undor-Hai at all. (And what about Zuri? She's either here in the wilderness, all alone and afraid, or she's off with Patrick...whatever place he is right now.)

She was proud of the good time she had been making up the mountain, even though nightfall had passed. She peered through the shadows and, with the last gleam of daylight, saw a blond-haired man farther up the trail. For a split second she wondered who it was, then she decided that it had to be Patrick. If his hair looked too dark, or the clothes a little odd, it was just a trick of the night air.

.

Cloud heard someone approaching from behind him and discreetly glanced over his shoulder. (A young woman, blond...wearing pink...running towards me?) He turned to face her and cautiously held his sword in front of him, as a precaution.

"Who's there?" he asked slowly.

"I could say the same thing to you," replied Aeris. (This is definitely _not_ Patrick.)

"I'm here to visit someone. Raieyana Amine...and her family."

"Amine? She hasn't had that name in years. You must mean Raieyana Jordan." Her eyes narrowed. "That is, if you mean anything at all."

"Jordan..." he said softly to himself. (That was Reeve's last name, wasn't it? Of course. I was just being a little stupid.)

"So what business do you have?" A tinge of hostility crept into Aeris' voice. "There have been some...problems here as of late. If you cannot come up with a satisfactory answer, I'll have to destroy you."

Though the girl raised her weapon like she had been born with it in her hands, Cloud was troubled little. He could easily overpower the girl. Even if she was almost as tall as he, she was rather slender. He met her eyes with a look that proved he was not intimidated by her at all. "I'm Cloud Strife."

"You can't be!" Her eyes slowly examined him in wonderment. (But he looks...so..._good_.) "I thought Cloud Strife was older than my mother!"

"Who's your mom?"

"Raieyana," she said softly. "I'm Aeris."

On impulse, Cloud took her hand in his and brought it to his lips. "From a noble line. The Cetra." He released it, realizing that he had probably stepped over his boundaries. "When I learned your mother named you after..." A pause. "I wondered if it couldn't possibly be bordering on the sacrilegious. But it suits you."

There was something in his eyes. Even though Aeris had long known about the battles with Sephiroth and Cloud's noble actions then, there was something in her father's tone whenever he spoke of the one-time leader of Avalanche. A certain spin of knowledge began to circulate her mind.

Cloud saw the conflict in her eyes and mistook it for emotion. "I didn't ever mean it as an insult to you, it's just hard to see someone named after a person you knew well."

(The way Dad talks about Patrick...and then the way he always talked about Cloud... They're similar.) She glanced at Cloud. "No, that's not it at all. I've just got a lot on my mind. What brings you to Undor-Hai?" She motioned for him to start walking again, and they continued up the trail.

"Well," he answered slowly, "I'm here to visit someone I should have a long time ago."

"Mom?"

He shook his head. "Don't ask me for my reasoning right now, but I need to see Patrick."

"So do I." Her eyes trailed off to a distant point somewhere. She was avoiding his clever gaze; she did not want him to see the emotion in her eyes. "There really have been problems around here lately."

"Can you tell me?"

"All I know...is there was an incident where a strange man came to our house in the middle of the night. I was in Kalm at the time, but apparently, Patrick killed the stranger...and Mom just kind of went into shock. Dad blamed it on him, and Patrick fled from the house." She sighed. "Seems the world just started crumbling that night. Next day, Vincent and Yuffie's daughter ran away into the woods around here, even though she's defenseless. Someone took over Alcor and locked up the executive board."

Cloud was quiet. "That seems like a lot to have happened in such a short period of time."

"That's not all," she said. "The night this started, Red XIII told us he sensed negative energy here. When I went to bed..." (No, I can't say this.) Her voice trailed off.

"Was it a couple nights ago?"

The girl nodded cautiously.

"Don't take this the wrong way...but have you been hearing 'voices'?"

Aeris was stunned. "How do you know?"

"That's why I'm here, now. Because I was told to be...in a dream."

* * *

Tifa raised her arms above her head, stretching in her chair. Reading ages-old scripture was taxing; she yawned as she stood up to make another trip to the shelves in the next room. Cosmo Canyon had long kept an extensive library of old scrolls, many of which had Ancient origin. For centuries, the Elders of the Canyon had guarded this library with their lives. But now that Tifa had direct exchange with Undor-Hai, there was a program going on. For every piece that Tifa let Lia and her scholars use, a scroll new to the Elders would be traded. Partly for collateral, partly for good reason.

It doesn't make sense to gather all the Planet's knowledge in one place; now the Elders at Cosmo Canyon knew about the _Khazed_ scriptures that had foretold Raieyana's death and resurrection. In return, Undor-Hai now knew many things about the Calamity from the Skies and Gast's discoveries. There were many pieces that the Elders at the Canyon had long regarded as worthless. Even though the later dialects of the Cetra were easily discerned by the people at Undor-Hai or the Elders, the most ancient scrolls were still undecipherable, to most.

Tifa remembered the day about five years ago. That day, she had made up her mind that she was going to be able to read every single glyph written on every piece of scroll that Cosmo Canyon had. She had trekked up to Undor-Hai and learned the art of translation at Raieyana's feet. After a few weeks Tifa had been satisfied, and she returned home. She read a lot of simple mythological scrolls that were interesting, but not of much use to anyone. She used them to compile a simple book. She decided that the early Cetra civilization had not made any innovations worth discussing until later days.

Reaching back on the dusty shelf, she pulled off a large scroll of myths, wondering if they contained a hidden meaning that would help, or mention some ancient remedy that could help Raieyana. She turned to leave but suddenly something caught her eye.

The shelf was high in the air, and supposedly only contained a single row of documents for that reason. She was not tall enough to get a closer look, so she pulled a tall stool over beneath the shelf. Stepping onto it, she peered into the murky darkness. There was a small scroll that looked like it had been shoved to the back. She looked at the glyphs written on the outer part of the scroll. _Teilenma'ar avid Jenn o' Vahh et Khazed. _"Prophecies beyond Jenova and the Sacrifice."

Tifa studied it in disbelief. (This just might be a little helpful, now. I should get down and have me a look.)

* * *

"It's early. But if you're going to be up at dawn to train every day, I suppose we had better turn in."

Azura looked at Patrick. "The sun's only been down about an hour or so."

"Well, the days are lengthening now. We're having a real spring."

"I've never seen this before."

He smiled. "Neither have I. It's strange sometimes to think there is a lot that we missed out, isn't it?"

"I haven't totally minded the easy things."

"Me either."

She studied his face; she had begun to know him so well that she could tell—just by the dull look in his eye—that life at home had not been quite like her life at all. Giving him a little smile, she moved over close to him.

No thought was needed; this response was second nature now. Patrick wrapped an arm protectively around her as she rested her head on his shoulder. Looking deep into her eyes, he whispered. "_My trade was worth it_."

At this, she wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her face in his chest. His strong arms clutched her tight against him, like she was a precious jewel, fallen from the sky. He did not utter the thought that echoed through his head. (I just hope, that for all that has been and will be, yours was worth it, too.)

"Pat?" She was looking up into his face. Her eyes shone like the stars.

He softly tilted her face up a little before he brought his lips down to hers. They clung tightly to each other. The world stopped for Patrick as she deepened the kiss, running her hands down his back.

.

"Hey, look there." Daniel pointed to a gleam in the distance.

"That's a fire." Benjamin grinned. "I think we've found something that we've been looking for."

Daniel stopped the young man as he prepared to charge on the spot. "Wait. You know what we're supposed to do, right?"

"Yeah. Use status-changing magic on the girl so we can bring her in stopped, sleeping, as a frog, whatever." He gave his partner a cocky smile. "I can do whatever the hell I want to the damn murderer."

"You know you can't. I won't let you either."

"You'd stand before a killer to save his life? His is worth more than yours."

"That's not the point, Ben. My mother would have my head if I bore witness to something like that. Patrick is the son of her best friend."

"He's nothing to me. Got it? Stay out of my way." Benjamin stormed through the trees, axe drawn.

.

The pair in front of the fire broke apart at the startling noise. Patrick patted his hip sheaths for his sabres and Azura slipped back a little so her staff was at arm's reach. They were both stunned to see an Undorian warrior standing before them.

"What d'ya know, Danny?"

Daniel came up behind Benjamin and was just as stunned by the sight before him as his partner was.

"Two birdies in one bush. This works out. You get the girl, I get the killer." He leered at Patrick. "What were you gonna do there, huh? Rape 'er or something?"

The couple slowly stood. Patrick could reach his weapons in a split second, and Azura concealed hers behind her.

"Just who do you think you are?" demanded Patrick.

"Hey now," said Daniel, "our piece isn't with you, okay? We were sent out to find the girl."

"Maybe she doesn't want to be found."

"Maybe we should ask _her_." Benjamin raised his axe, in preparation for a battle.

"I _left_," she said softly. "It's not your business."

"We have our orders," said Daniel.

"Do you think I _care_? This is my life. The only way you'll get me to go with you is if you kill me first."

Patrick stepped in front of her. "If either of you touches her, it will be over my dead body."

"Goody." Benjamin smirked. "You just gave me permission to kill you."

Both sides prepared for battle. The two warriors were merely fighting for orders, however; Azura and Patrick's fight was for freedom.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

.

"No, that's not an acceptable plan." Reeve tossed the papers down angrily. "The last thing I need to do is hand myself right over to them."

"I thought you entering the codes would be a good idea," said Ishmael defensively.

"What are the chances that these guys left the security codes as they are? And then, what are the chances...that Yorlain hasn't changed them since I was working there? Dammit, the guy isn't stupid!"

"He must have done something dumb to get his company taken over." Kati folded her arms across her chest.

"I agree," said Barret. "Reeve, you shoulda stayed with them." "Excuse me for wanting to spend time with my family. And let them live in a peaceful place!"

"Well we have two basic options." Sean looked at him. "I know you've done this before, so enlighten me if I'm wrong. Are there any other ways besides either storming the building or sneaking in?"

"I'm not against sneaking in." Reeve sighed. "But there are extensive computer defenses set up, and I don't know if we have any way of getting around them."

"I told you I could hack into it if you could get me to the security room."

"Ishmael, can we afford to take that chance?"

"Dad. Can we afford not to?"

"If ya take any longer, I'm gonna get myself in there and get Marlene freed on my own!" Barret was finished arguing.

"Well don't go in the dead of night, that's just fucking stupid," said Cid, as he came down from the bridge.

"How d'ya think to do it, then?" he demanded.

"Uhh, how about daytime?" suggested Kati. "As long as we are properly disguised. Well, you guys, at least."

"Us guys?" Cid scratched his head.

"You're kinda famous for saving the world a few times and all."

"Oh yeah, that," he muttered sarcastically. "I hope this time goes fast, I promised to build Baker a damn airplane. Can't have a Highwind who doesn't know how to fly!"

.

"Okay," said Reeve, "any objections with this? Kati and Sean...plus Cid, go to the front desk area and create a diversion."

"What kind of diversion?" asked Sean.

"Surprise me."

"Don't worry kiddo," Cid reassured him. "I'm a pro at diversions."

"I bet," muttered the nineteen-year-old.

"While that happens," Reeve continued, "Barret, Ishmael, and I will head to the security room. There may be some forces to go after us on the way, but I think they'll probably all be deployed after Cid and company. Ishmael will hack into the system after we get rid of the personnel in the room."

"Oh yeah." Ishmael grinned at his fiancee.

"Hopefully it won't come to killing them, if they are my own employees. If they know me, they'll probably give up. Then after Ishmael's disabled security, the three of us will head up to the prison floors and release Yorlain, Marlene, and the others. If they're up there."

"What do we do during then?" asked Sean.

"Well, after you create your diversion, you'll probably be fighting security."

"Oh."

"It's too late now to go shopping, but first thing in the morning, a couple of you kids go buy some disguises for us in Junon. We head to Alcor..." Reeve thought for a moment. "Eleven a.m. sounds good, doesn't it?"

* * *

Red XIII was keeping watch over Raieyana. (She's finally sleeping, peacefully too.) Most of the time, Raieyana had been awake, but unaware of her surroundings. (If I didn't know better, I would say she's acting like those Soldiers did about fourteen years ago.)

The problem with that diagnosis happened to be that no cure had ever been discovered for the Soldiers' ailments; they reverted back to normal after the Reunion. (Her condition may be a marker for events yet to come.) Some little voice within him hoped that maybe this was true, and also, when the time came, that these events could be handled without her aid.

Green eyes fluttered open and looked around the room, resting on Red XIII's face. "Hello," he said softly, expecting a nonsense answer, if any at all.

"How is he?" she whispered.

"Who?" he replied, wondering if his words were in vain.

"Pa'at Rich..." she murmured.

"Patrick?"

Raieyana nodded. "The son of the sun."

He was startled at her words, her seeming recovery, but he wanted to give her an answer that would not be upsetting. "He's in Undor-Hai, I believe."

She closed her eyes. "Good." Sitting up suddenly, she grabbed him by the mane and looked deep into his eyes. Hers were filled with worry. "He must not go to Junon yet. It's not time, he doesn't know what he has to do."

"I'll try to tell him that."

Casting a frantic look at the lion, she threw herself back down on the bed. A tear slid down her cheek. "He has to stay with the girl until she's strong enough..."

"What girl? Azura?" Red XIII was hit with a sudden awareness. No matter if Raieyana was better or not, she was revealing things that could become very important later. (The sick Soldiers muttered words about the Reunion. _"Drawn to the beacon, she comes."_ And Raieyana called Patrick...son of the sun? There is some connection...)

"Asula..." Raieyana muttered. "Pa'at Rich...Kal'od..." A sniffle. "I miss them." She turned to him. "If you see them, tell them...that Riana wants to see them again."

He watched as she closed her eyes and fell unconscious once more. A knock came at the door. Startled, he turned around quickly. "Come in."

Marta stood at the door hesitantly. "You were talking to her?"

He nodded. "A little bit. She's sleeping now."

"Good." She looked at him with wide brown eyes. "She scares me sometimes."

"You must tell me what she says, then. But you are going to watch her now?"

"Yes. Mama told me to come get you. She said she found a scroll that you are going to find very interesting."

"Really." He stood up on all fours and stretched his legs. "I suspect our conversation will prove to be most informative."

* * *

"So you've been living away from it all for almost fourteen years?" Aeris looked at Cloud incredulously.

He was almost as surprised at their conversation. Sitting in the living room of Raieyana's house with the young girl, somehow he had wanted to open up to her. So there he was, cross-legged on the floor in front of the fireplace. Lia had removed the body that had been there and thrown out the carpeting. The cleaning had been done so well that the two did not suspect the events of two days before had occurred on the wood beneath them.

"I thought living here was like being away from it all. I get restless here."

He smiled at her. "I suppose everyone gets restless when they are young."

"Don't talk like you're some ancient sailor spinning yarns to your grandchildren. I won't allow it!"

"Why not?" He studied her pretty face. "According to you, and I quote, 'Cloud Strife is older than my mom.'"

Aeris laughed.

The sound made his heart stop. Perhaps her family had been unaware–neither Raieyana nor Reeve had ever met Aeris Gainsborough in person—but this Aeris's laugh sounded like a carbon copy of the original's.

"Mom isn't old. Give me a few more years and people will think we're sisters. She barely ages at all. I think it's the Mako, or that Jenova, or something. Hope I inherit it." She grinned. "Looks like your Soldier treatment delivered the same favors to you. You look great."

"...for my age. That's what you're supposed to continue with."

She blushed slightly. "No, you just look great." She stood up, a little too quickly. "Do you want something to drink or something?"

"No, I'm fine. You go ahead though. I'm sure you got sick of listening to me talk." Cloud leaned back, stretching out his body before the warmth of the fire.

Aeris swore to herself that she knew it was rude to stare. But sitting right in front of her was a legendary hero, who looked better than she had ever imagined, and here was the kicker: she had never seen him before, so he wasn't "Uncle Cloud" in her mind.

He looked up at her. (Do I look that weird to her? Maybe she thinks I'm some strange crazy hermit, and she's thinking of the best way to throw me out.)

"I'm trying to be a good hostess. You sure you don't want a drink, cause I can go and—" she turned to leave.

Catching her arm, he looked up at her. "Do I bother you or something? 'Cause I can go camp out somewhere if you'd rather..."

"No, it's not that at all...it's just..." Aeris plopped down next to him. "I've never been just alone with someone before. I'm either with Ishmael and we're hanging out, or I'm by myself."

"So I make you uncomfortable." He shook his head and sighed. "I should have guessed."

"No, not at all." She smiled. "I'd love to sit and listen to all the wonderful stories you must have."

"Aeris." His mouth didn't even falter as it formed the name that once belonged to a flower girl, long since passed on to the Promised Land. "There are many, many horrible stories mixed in with those, too. I haven't been alone in my life without a reason."

"Everything happens for a reason. Perhaps you had to leave everything to get to know yourself." She reached out and touched his hand.

Cloud shrank back. "You're young. You don't know what you're saying."

"I'm not that young—"

"I'm twice as old as you. That should count for a lot."

She stubbornly grabbed his hand again. The words slipped slowly from her mouth.

.

_"Tears of sorrow and pain, remorse and shame.  
You see the curse of the damned, placed in your hand.  
Time slips slowly by; transgressions hidden in a lie  
Now you must let it go, learn what you need to know  
That one deed not done in hate; but born of grace  
All trouble will be gone, if the son of the sun  
Is born this time...the Planet stays alive."_

.

He was transfixed.

"I see an aura of sadness, shadowed in sorrow." Her hand reached up and softly stroked his face. "You hide from the light of day, because of him."

He turned from her. "Who?"

The spell was broken; her connection with Cloud and the power within her had stopped. "My father," she said in her everyday voice. "I saw it. Something...some trouble between you and him, because of..."

"What do you see, Aeris?"

"I need to ask _you _the questions, Cloud."

"No. You can see things, you have a gift...is this some thing given to you by the Cetra?"

"Perhaps." She looked into his eyes. "But this is important."

"So is the fact that you can touch me and start to utter prophetic poetry." He shook his head. "I couldn't believe it unless I heard it myself."

"Well you did. How do you think I feel?" She shivered. "I'm scared that all of a sudden I see things. It's more than voices. Half the time, I just realize something. Like I had been taught this in school and merely forgotten."

He placed a hand on her shoulder. "You have a gift."

"I don't like it." She placed a trembling hand on his. "Can you just try to see how terrifying it is?" She rolled her eyes. "And then, I get to have an emotional breakdown," she muttered, "in front of the sexiest guy I have ever seen. The last few days have been just _so_ great for me."

(Me...sexy?) He looked at her with new eyes. It was true that he had noticed she was gorgeous...and he saw parts of Aeris Gainsborough in her...but he was too wise now to go after anyone he had interest in. (I just cause pain. Besides, the timing's terrible on this. It would have been nice half a lifetime ago.) If she had interest in him, however...could he...could they? Then he realized something very important. (I doubt I'd live through even sharing a kiss with her. She's _Reeve's_ daughter.)

"There is one problem with this, though."

"With what?" Cloud asked.

She blushed. "My interest in you...see...I told you I've been realizing things."

"Yes?" he prompted.

"Well." Aeris looked him straight in the eye. "Don't you dare deny this, either. I know."

Suddenly, he knew what she was going to say. That he was—

"You're Patrick's father."


	17. Part 5: The Child of Destiny - Chapter ...

Part 5— The Child of Destiny

.

Chapter 17

.

"What?"

"I know it must sound presumptuous of me to just outright say it, but..." Aeris's voice trailed off. (Oh no. What if I was wrong?) She slowly took a deep breath.

Cloud realized she had been upset by his reaction. (Oh no, oh no...not again. Can't I do anything right without hurting someone?) "No...it was just surprising to hear someone say it. I don't know if I've heard anyone say it."

"So it is true," she mused softly.

"Of course." He shook his head. "Of course you'd find out...because the idea to hide the truth was my idea."

"That's not why." A smile. "Believe me, Cloud. I know because the time has come. We can't hide the truth anymore."

"So you know the truth? All the truth?" A realization suddenly hit him. "I didn't want to do it, I swear I didn't—" He gasped as fourteen years of pent-up emotions overtook him.

"Shh...don't." (I've never seen anyone in so much agony before...he...he hurts so bad because of how the grand scheme of things got skewed by _her_.) She did the only thing that she could think of, taking him into her arms. "It's all right now...I know it. Everything will be fine..."

"It's not all right, it's not. You wouldn't act like this if you knew how it happened." He laughed bitterly. "I would run a sword through any man who did the same thing. Planet forbid I ever work up enough balls to do it to myself."

"No. The Planet told me. I know. I know everything. _Everything_."

Scared blue eyes peered into her face. "How much do you know?"

The sadness and hope intermixed inside her, and she raised her eyes upward. Though she knew both his pain and that of her mother, she also knew the opportunity that had been offered up to all that lived on the Planet. "All anyone could know about you. Things that played out for you during years' worth of time...the knowledge...the memories...have suddenly bestowed upon me."

"You know everything in the Planet?"

She shook her head. "I know everything in _Cloud_." Placing a hand over his heart, she managed a small smile. "It's been a long time since you've had someone willing to vouch for you, isn't it?"

He looked away. "It's bad enough for the Planet to treat me as I've been told it has. Why should it curse you so?"

Aeris stood up and shrugged. "Hey, I've been trying to think of all this new knowledge as a gift from the Planet. Though I'm just guessing that the powers-that-be want some kind of agent here for their own purposes." She glanced down at the man. "It's weird though. I'm beginning to think that they're doing something else to me."

He stood up next to her. "What is it?" he asked with concern. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Oh yeah." She gave a little laugh. "It's the funniest thing. First they give me all this knowledge and understanding so you have a friend with you."

"There's more?"

She briefly nodded, then leaned in closer to him. "For some reason or another..." A wink. "...I just want to do this."

Every fiber of Cloud's body tingled in surprise as Raieyana's daughter brought her lips to his, in a deep kiss. Intensity surged through his mind, willing him to withdraw from what he knew would be a mistake. (No. Even if it's selfish, even if it doesn't mean anything at all, let me have this moment. If one other person can feel it inside to have mercy on my soul, I know I can go on.) He cautiously returned the gesture, prolonging it as long as he could. (If only this one moment would never end...)

* * *

The man with the axe inched closer. "Get back," growled Patrick.

Daniel shook his head and prepared a spell. Closing his eyes, he gathered the energy it would take to cast. (Please work. I don't want either one of them angry at me.) "Sleep–All!"

Azura gasped as her protector fell to his knees in slumber. "What's wrong with you guys?" she fumed.

Daniel suddenly saw the ribbon on the girl's arm. (Oh shit.)

Benjamin smiled and prepared to go after Patrick. He jumped back as a bolt of lightning struck the ground in front of him. "Ow! Fuckin' hell?" He dropped his weapon; apparently, a bit of the electricity had conducted through the metal in it. "How'd the bitch cast so fast?"

She tossed her head. "I'm not fast, you're just slow."

"Oh really." He dusted off his weapon and prepared to cast something on her. (Something good. Make her pay.)

"Ben!" Daniel shook his head. "Status stuff only."

"Screw that, she shocked me. Obviously she's not the helpless babe that everyone suspected. She's that freak's slut."

"Esuna," said Azura softly.

A blue light flashed and Patrick stood again. "Don't you come nearer," he swore at the two warriors.

"Dan? Put him back to sleep, she's not strong enough to keep waking him up."

Unfortunately for Benjamin's plan, Azura had a mastered Heal materia. She hadn't bothered to check on Patrick after the Esuna spell; she was too busy working on her next. Her eyes flashed green as she cast Resist on him.

Patrick grinned. (I gotta give her a kiss for that later.) "So what d'ya say boys? Are you going to leave a grown girl by herself, or should I let her fry you guys?"

"We saw her measly Bolt3 spell." Benjamin grinned. "So she can cast. Big deal."

.

Shoving her way past Patrick, Azura gave Benjamin a once-over and laughed. "Right. And I've never seen a grown man get so worried over a simple Bolt spell. Level one, honey, and you couldn't even take it."

Patrick held out an arm to hold her back.

"Pat? Can I cast something on him? I won't kill him—quickly."

He cracked a smile and waved a hand. "Ladies first."

Daniel and Benjamin looked at each other warily. She pointed to Daniel. "Step back, Danny-boy. I'll handle you next." She winked at Benjamin. "Here's to never seeing your ugly mug again."

He rolled his eyes, and decided to cast something on her while she prepared her spell. (Cocky bitch. If I ever get my hands on her when that Danny isn't around...)

Unfortunately for him, he had no idea that she was nonchalantly gathering her magic power during the conversation. She cast Frog Song on him while he was still in mid-eye roll.

Patrick laughed. "Zuri, that has to be the best thing I've seen you do yet."

She bent over and picked up the sleeping frog. Handing it to Daniel, she said, "You're lucky he was with you. Otherwise, you would be the toad."

He sighed. "What am I supposed to do now? My dad told me to come get Azura Valentine."

"Tell Legolas that Azura doesn't want to be found. And the next time he sends a toad after her, it'll come back squashed." Patrick crossed his arms.

"You know you can't stay out here, Patrick."

The blond boy nodded. "I'll leave the area." After seeing the glance sent his way, he rephrased his statement. "_We'll_ leave the area. Me and Zuri."

"Will you have enough to live on until you can get someplace else?"

"I'm not sure. Dan, you couldn't do me a favor, could you?"

"Depends on what it is," he said slowly.

Patrick looked up. "I'd like to get some more of my things from my house. Is there any way you could get everyone out of it?"

"No one is there, Patrick. They took your mom somewhere."

A brief look of worry crossed his face, and Azura noticed it. She decided to take over for him. "Can you help us get back without having to face any more of these 'warriors'?"

Daniel thought for a moment, then nodded. "Follow me." He left the toad sleeping in the grass as he led the two back to Undor-Hai.

* * *

He broke away, breathing heavily. "This isn't right."

Aeris cocked her head to the side. "I _am_ an adult, you know. I can kiss whomever I decide to."

"You don't know me."

She laughed. "Actually, it's you who doesn't know _me_. I got mega-brain integration by some floofy angel up there. I got to see every side of you."

"That's what I don't get. You _say_ that...and then you know I'm the father of your brother..."

"Little brother."

"...like that makes it any better."

"It helps a little." A small smile brushed her lips. "Besides, look at how you're reacting. Have you ever _been_ kissed before?"

"Of course."

"Your mother doesn't count."

He turned away from her. "And you're just a child."

"You're just saying that to me because I was right!" She grabbed his shoulders and turned him so he was facing her. "Cloud, have you ever been in love even?"

"Have you?"

"No. But I'm a child." She smirked.

"I thought I was...once. But I never got the chance to find out. I was your age...she was a sweet little thing. Then again," he continued bitterly, "I only seemed to notice how special she was...after she was gone."

"It still hurts?" Aeris looked at him.

"No. Well, a little, but I came to terms with it many years ago. One of those things that 'had to happen.'" He lowered his head. "Anyway, I didn't even get a kiss from her, and then...someone loved me once, but by the time I saw, she was done with me."

"Life isn't a storybook."

"We all know that deep down, but you haven't really seen that yet. That's why you shouldn't even bother trying with me. I burned the book back when you were still just a child."

She touched his arm. "A kiss isn't going to bind me to you with chains of steel. It could be the first link, though."

The fire had begun to die; a husky twilight had descended upon the room. "Do you even want a _link_ to me?" asked Cloud.

"No...I wouldn't settle for something so small. Somehow, I do know you, though. This is very soon, too soon for anything. But I need the time for you to learn if you want a link to me. If you can trust me..." Green eyes fell on his blue ones. They were the third of their line to do so.

This time, the lips that reached over were his own. This kiss was an answer to her question; even a friendship could not be built in a day, but the chemistry that seemed to spark in the very air between them was hard to ignore.

.

Suddenly, the door flew open as Patrick and Zuri entered the house. The sight that greeted the boy's eyes was that of his sister, in the arms of the man who had once hurt his mother, long ago.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

.

_"She wants to relay a message to you. 'I'm all right,' she says, 'and I need you to stop looking for me. I'll come back when I wish. Sending people to find me will only end up in them getting hurt.'"_

Vincent glared at the PHS. "Legolas. You're saying Daniel found her and just let her go."

_"She turned one of my best warriors into a frog."_

"It's called 'transform magic.' It can easily be prevented with a ribbon or something."

_"Which she was wearing. Especially since she's with Patrick, the only way to force her back home would be to knock her unconscious and drag her back. After killing him."_

"Well...?"

_"You can't be serious about _that_, can you? Because I'm not going to send people out to kill the kid. And you have to be concerned enough whether your daughter will be okay..."_

"I doubt she'll be okay with _him_."

_"Danny said she looked perfectly fine. I wash my hands of the matter, Vincent. She's perfectly capable of taking care of herself, and she doesn't want to come back."_

(How can she not want to come back...?)

_"She told Daniel that she wanted you and Yuffie to know she was fine, but she made her decision."_

"She's just a child..."

_"According to Daniel, a child with fearsome strength in magic. You can make your own decision. It's beyond what we can do here. Out of bounds. It's a family matter. You can only hope someday she decides she wants to remedy whatever bond was broken there."_

"Nothing was broken!"

_"Vincent. It's not my concern. Go talk with your family. That's what you need to concentrate on."_

.

Vincent slammed down the PHS as his wife walked into the room. "Who was that?"

He sighed. "Legolas."

"Any news from Undor-Hai?"

"Yes."

Worry crossed her face. "What is it?"

"They found Zuri. She's with Patrick, and she has no intentions of coming back. They manhandled a pair of warriors, of which one was Daniel Masterson."

"Legolas's son?"

"Yes. She told Dan to tell us that she isn't going to come back to see us until she's ready. She threatened anyone we might send after her."

Yuffie let out a sigh of relief. "So she's fine."

"Fine? She's out there, alone, with _Patrick_, and refuses to come home! That's just so fine!"

She shrugged. "She's at that stage..."

He returned her remark with a cold glare. "That stage?"

"Calm down honey. You were never a sixteen-year-old girl. Just think, how much better behaved she is than I was at sixteen!"

"I always appreciated that...but..." He glanced at Yuffie. "I also remember what you were doing when you were sixteen. You know, the whole reason for Kati's existence..."

"Oh." She sat down. "That."

"I'm slightly worried."

"You _did_ mention birth control methods in the 'birds and the bees' talk, right?"

"Me? I thought _you_ gave her that talk."

A startling realization crossed Yuffie's face. "Uh oh." She looked at her husband. "I hope Zuri cools down. _Soon_."

* * *

"This is very interesting, indeed. How long has it been hidden back in the library, do you think?" Red XIII examined the scroll.

Tifa shrugged. "I honestly have no idea. It wasn't until I learned to read that dialect that anyone would have had a clue to its importance."

"Why do you think it is important? Besides the fact that we haven't seen it before, that is."

"Well...as you know, the Cetra were expert word builders. Many words are just compounds...because there are so many syllables that have their own meanings, some that differ in context."

"Yes, that's one of the things that makes these ancient writings so difficult to decipher."

She looked at him. "A few years ago, I was lucky enough to get a good look at the scrolls that Raieyana had worked on about twenty years ago. The ones that talked about resurrection, and the prophecy about her resurrection. It was the only place that these two glyphs appeared together. _Khazed_."

"What does the word mean?"

"Sacred death. Raieyana sacrificed herself, so the prophecy of _Khazed_ referred to that instance. The same word is in the title of this scroll I found."

"Another prediction of sacrifice."

Tifa shook her head. "Maybe, but I doubt it. I believe that if I get a chance to work on this, we'll find that it is referring to _her_ death. The title...it's prophecies _beyond_ the Calamity from the Skies and the Sacrifice."

Red XIII held up the scroll. "So what you are saying..." He spoke slowly. "That right here, in our hands, could lie the key to our future?"

She nodded.

"When do we begin?"

"Now. Unless you want to sleep tonight. I doubt we'll want to stop once we get into this."

He thought of Raieyana's words and how they piqued his curiosity. "I'll go get the things we need."

* * *

"Patrick?" Aeris's eyes went wide in surprise.

"I was told that no one was here," he said in a low voice. "Don't worry, I'll be on my way." He turned to leave.

"Wait!" She ran to stop him. "You can't go. I was looking for you."

"You were trying oh so very hard."

"Well, in case you didn't notice, it's dark and kind of late. I was going to go out into the woods in the morning."

"Why did you need to find me? Do you want to attack me, too, or something?"

"Attack you? Patrick..." Her brow furrowed. "Is everything okay?"

Azura spoke softly. "That's really not the question to ask someone at a time like this."

Aeris looked sheepish. "Fine. This is all right. Now I don't have to search for Patrick, and he doesn't have to hide. Anyone comes by here, I just say I haven't seen you."

.

Patrick eyed Cloud with suspicion. "That would help. Now could you tell me who _this_ is?"

He stepped forward. "Cloud Strife."

"I see. Never knew you were such great friends with my sister."

"Pat..." said Azura, a tone of warning in her voice.

"What?" He turned to her. "I have no right to ask what this strange guy is doing fondling a member of my family?"

"He didn't _fondle_ me!" exclaimed Aeris.

Giving the girl a look of sympathy, Azura addressed Patrick. "Look. We need to discuss some things anyway, so why don't we go to your room and talk?"

He nodded.

"Patrick?" Aeris stepped forward and looked at him. "You will come back with me to Cosmo Canyon in a few days, right? To see Mom?"

"What does _Reeve_ have to say about that?" he spat out.

She winced. "If we find a way back without using the Airship, he'd never know."

"Tell me if you do. Then I'll come. Zuri?" He turned to her and they prepared to leave.

"She needs you. I know she does. I'll fight Dad on this, I know what's right here. I know the truth."

He sighed. "I just can't face him again now."

"You won't be alone."

"Let's hope that's enough..." He walked up the stairs to his room, followed by Azura.

.

Aeris sank down onto a couch and sighed.

"I thought that went rather well," said Cloud sarcastically.

"No, that's the best part of it all. For a conversation with _him_, it did go well. We never really got along too well. It was like Ishmael and I had our own world, and then there was Patrick."

"Not much family bliss, huh?"

"We were happy enough. Mom was always around, keeping the peace. God, she's so strong. To see everything collapse now that she's not well...makes me finally understand how strong."

"You seem pretty strong yourself." He sat down next to her.

"Eh, it's hereditary. Besides, I had to be. Two tough brothers. Especially that one upstairs, always too strong, too smart for his age."

"I know. I was surprised. I had a fourteen-year-old pictured in my mind. He looked...almost your age. Of course, I'm sure my surprise also had something to do with...I know Azura's sixteen, and next to him she looks so small and innocent."

"You say that, but if you knew her..." Aeris shook her head. "Before, she was innocent. She don't look all that innocent anymore."

Cloud was quiet for a moment, thinking. "You don't suppose that this change could be the result of anything he might have done to her...?"

She shook her head. "No. It's just the well-behaved princess didn't want to be sent back to Wutai the minute there were problems here. She'd always been friendly with Patrick, and she was there when my Dad went nuts on him. So she went to find him. I always knew deep down she was gonna be looking for him after I heard she ran away."

"So...we're going to try to get to Cosmo Canyon then? Without calling Cid?"

A nod. "Hopefully avoiding my father."

"The only way to get to that continent is to take a boat or fly out from Junon."

"I know that. But Dad is there, handling a problem with his company."

"We'll just have to stay away from the Alcor building." He smiled at her. "It's just sneaking four people through a major city. Nothing big."

"Right!" He laughed with her, but suddenly she stopped and looked at him.

"What is it?"

She blushed and looked down. "I dunno. I haven't been acting much like myself at all today."

"Like in what..."

"It's just...you must think I am such a big flirt and I'm really not at all. I've never really done anything at all. I've never even been kissed."

He leaned in closer and touched her hand. "So are you saying that you mind...that you kissed me earlier...and then when I kissed you—"

She didn't let him finish. She turned to face him, about to tell him... And then she noticed that her lips were a mere breadth from his. "No," she whispered, "I liked it."

He covered the small space between them and kissed her hungrily, then broke away. "Maybe I should let you finish what you meant to say before I butt in like that again," he said softly.

"I was just..." She broke eye contact. "I just wonder now what might have happened if Patrick hadn't interrupted us."

Cloud stood up. "Me too." He glanced at the stairs. "Where should I sleep tonight?"

"On the couch." She walked to the stairs. "I'm gonna go to my room now. Goodnight, Cloud." She ran up to her room before he could give her a response.

"Goodnight...Aeris," he murmured as he sat back down on the couch, trying to comprehend all the odd feelings coursing through him. (Too much happened today.)


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

.

"You do know that the only way to get on that continent by ourselves is by boat from Junon, right?"

Patrick nodded, glancing at the girl sitting cross-legged on his bed. (Still seems like I only first _truly_ saw her a second ago. Can't believe she's sitting there. With me. Every time I turn my head, I'm afraid that she'll vanish straight into the night air.)

Azura watched him pacing back and forth across the room, as she smoothed a tangle from her long hair. "Will it work?"

"It should. Aeris isn't stupid enough to lead us anywhere where Reeve might be."

"Pat." She pleaded with her eyes. "I know you're angry with him, but shouldn't you call him 'Dad' out of respect?"

"Respect for what? His hatred?"

"He doesn't hate you."

He sighed and stared out the window. "There's a trait...passed down from my mother, and I think I received it. Dreams that are actually messages from somewhere beyond the physical Planet. Ever since that...that one night, I've been having dreams."

"Me too. Some scare me."

"Mine have been showing scenes from the past," he said, half-patronizing. "My mother's past. I have good reason to believe that Reeve isn't really my father."

"So?" Azura stood up and walked over next to him. "He was there for you. He's still your dad." She placed a hand on his.

He turned away. "He was always cold to me."

"He probably tried his best. If the truth seems harsh to you, it must be duly so for him."

(Why does she take _his_ side?) "Does he need _your_ defense now, too?"

A few tears glittered in her eyes in response to his harsh words, but she willed them not to fall. "Even if he hated you, nothing good will ever come from you hating him back. I thought you wanted to help your mother. Even if Reeve is not above hating a stepson, you should love her enough to face him with strength. Hatred is weak."

He turned to her in time to see a drop fall from her eyes to the floor. It sparkled in the dull lamplight. "Zuri. I always knew he didn't like me. I'm just so...so tired of it all. Aeris was nice today, but it always seemed that Mother was the only one who really wanted me around. One of my dreams has told me even _that_ might not be true."

She reached up and touched his face. "I want you around."

His eyes flashed and he covered her hand with his own.

"And just because you weren't planned—Pat, everyone knows that no one meant for Kati to be born. Your siblings probably weren't planned. That doesn't mean our mothers love us any less. Your mother is one of the most truthful people I have known. If you think she loves you, it's because she does. It's not a charade."

"Do you truly believe that, Zuri?"

She smiled and nodded. "Of course." She shyly closed her eyes and turned her face downward. "I know because...I love you too."

.

Azura quickly walked to the other side of the room, towards the suitcase she had left sitting there before she fled. It was as if she didn't want to hear his response. Her cheeks burned at her revelation. (How could you just come out and _say_ that to him? He wasn't expecting that. What if he didn't want that? What if he doesn't want you around now?) "Which room should I stay in tonight?" she asked lightly.

Patrick turned away. "You mean you don't want to stay here?"

"I just thought you wouldn't want me...especially with Aeris around."

"You stayed in here when both sets of our parents were down the hall."

She noticed that he included Reeve as his parent in that particular statement, storing it away in her memory for use later. "Well I wouldn't mind staying, but I don't want to get you in any trouble..."

He laughed. "Right. Zuri...if you want to take your slip of the tongue back, go right ahead."

She turned her back to him and went back to her nightgown search.

"Well?"

She whirled around. "What, you _expect_ me to say I didn't mean it? I am not a liar!" Her knees felt weak, her throat tight. Slowly, she turned and kneeled in front of her bag. She pretended like looking through that suitcase was the most important thing in the world to her. However, right then and there, the most important thing was standing behind her.

.

Patrick's eyes went wide when he heard a muffled cry come from the raven-haired girl. (What have I done?) "Zuri?"

"Don't worry..." She swallowed hard. "I'll just go. Find a room on my own or something."

(No!) He slowly walked over to her, kneeling beside her. "Stay," he whispered.

She turned her tear-streaked face to him and began to shake her head.

"Stay," he pleaded. "Because the worst moment in my life was when I realized that you were the one hurt by that dragon. And the best moment was when I realized that you had braved that wilderness out there to find me."

"It's not enough if you don't believe me," she said softly.

"I'm so sorry, god, I am. I just..._couldn't_...at first...it seemed too wonderful to be true. Then you wouldn't look at me."

"I'm looking at you now."

"I know..." his voice trailed off as his eyes searched her face. "Zuri, you're just so beautiful. Why would you be looking at me?" His eyes closed in pain. "I'm a killer."

She leaned forward and her lips traced a path across his face, light as a feather, opening slightly when they found Patrick's. "No," she whispered, "you gave _me_ a life."

He kissed her, with more passion. "I _love_ you," he stated simply.

Azura nodded and she wrapped her arms around his neck. There was something in her eyes.

Suddenly, he understood. He lifted her carefully as he began to stand, smiling softly all the while, as she planted soft kisses all over his face...his neck. He began to carry her—then he remembered.

Reaching over to the nightstand, Patrick turned off the oil lamp.

* * *

Tifa closed her eyes and brought her fingers up to her temples, massaging them.

"You know, you probably wouldn't get the headaches if you wore your glasses."

"Yeah, yeah." She looked at him. "Red...you're still young in terms of _your_ lifetime. You don't know what it's like to have delusions of youthfulness. Especially when most of your friends had Mako and Jenova treatments...and look ten years younger than their ages! Or Vincent." She scoffed. "It's not fair."

"You kept your figure."

She patted the part of her physique she was well-known for. "Thank the Planet for _that_, huh? I can wear bifocals and have dentures and have white hair, but as long as my fucking _breasts_ are perky, I'll never be old." She shook her head. "You know part of this fatigue is because these texts are so impossible."

"The _Khazed_ scroll seems easy when you have Raieyana around to correct you on it. Remember the one time she went to finish it and locked herself in a room on Highwind I for three hours? She told me she only did a sentence and a half."

"It was an important sentence!"

"True. But she forgot the last sentence. Turns out it was way more important to her than she ever would have guessed."

"But we know that outcome!"

Red XIII studied his passage. "So far, all I can come up with is there once was a happy village, then Jenova came and everyone died."

"Tell us something we didn't know."

"Actually, there are a few names dropped. Maybe they don't seem too interesting at first glance within the passage. Let me read them to you in a group. _Riana, Kal'od, Reiven, Pa'at Rich, Asula, Erhiz_..."

"Wait a minute!"

"Stranger still is that there is an accent on _Erhiz_. The 'e' isn't pronounced."

Tifa looked extremely confused. "If I thought you weren't speaking clearly, I would have thought you said 'Raieyana, Cloud, Reeve, Patrick, Azura, and Riss.'"

"Yes, that's the point. Is it a coincidence, or does it have meaning? Take into consideration Rissy's claim to know how to help the situation. Add in the fact that the Cetra word has been altered so it wouldn't be mistaken for Aeris..."

"It's like the writer knew that there would be confusion if he had just said 'Aeris.'"

"Perhaps they did know. The problem here is that the author _is_ talking about the past. But it sounds familiar. Cloud and Raieyana are to have a child named Patrick. Reeve doesn't want the child to be born."

"Huh?"

"You never knew?"

"About what?" She looked at him. "What the hell are you talking about? Cloud and Raieyana having...Patrick?"

The lion sighed. "It's a good thing you're sitting down. You probably don't want to hear what I have to tell you. It's about something that happened about fourteen and a half years ago..."


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

.

"Sir?"

Dirk turned around and glanced at the groveling employee. "What is it?" he growled.

The man's only response to his vicious look was a frightened stare.

"Well? If you're going to interrupt my scientific work, at the very least, it should be some matter about my corporate takeover." He peered at the terrified man. "Aren't you in charge of the whole 'Ryald' business, anyway?"

He nodded, trembling. "He still hasn't returned."

Rolling his eyes, Dirk turned away. "Well duh. After a week or so...for _his_ mission, not turning up means he's dead. Pity. The boy had such a sense of revenge in him."

"You made him well, sir."

"Of course I did! Although sending Jack Reno's clone after Reeve was actually more of a distraction for his wife."

"His wife?"

Dirk smiled. "There once was a Turk named Rude. When the Turks were involved in a kidnapping attempt on a woman named Raieyana, Rude decided to get all the money for himself. His attempt at this involved locking her up in a cell...with Reno. Happened to have a surveillance camera on them, too." He tossed a videocassette on a nearby lab table.

The employee picked it up after Dirk's gesture. "What is this?"

"A most interesting videotape. Reno meant a lot to Reeve's wife, apparently."

"Why do you want me to look at it?"

"Because your new job is to knock off Reeve's wife, and that's the best picture you can get on her." A cruel grin highlighted his face. "Besides, I've found that watching the president of Alcor's naked wife is a most enjoyable experience."

"May I just report my message to you before I leave then, sir?"

He yawned. "Might as well. Go ahead."

"The Highwind II has been spotted outside the city limits."

"Good." Dirk rubbed his hands together. "Let them try to get this place back."

* * *

Aeris sat at her window, watching the sun rise. (The days seem too long and too short at the same time. Too short to help Mom, but too long to have to wait through. Can anything better come in the morning? Even with all we know now...?)

She stood up and got dressed quickly, absentmindedly putting on a tight pink dress before braiding her blond hair. Grabbing her bag, which she hadn't bothered to unpack, and her sabres, she tripped down the stairs and into the kitchen. She was hoping that a nice little cozy breakfast might improve everyone's mood.

.

The soft sounds of Aeris bustling in the kitchen met Cloud's ears and he soon felt like he had to open his eyes. Tossing off the light throw blanket he used during the night, he got up and walked in. His inquisitive eyes enjoyed the sight of the soft morning light glowing around the girl's lithe form.

She looked up as he walked through the doorway and just froze. (Why is he wearing next to nothing?) Apparently, her two brothers had been rather discreet of the fact that cute pajamas were really for girls, and guys just liked their underwear. An egg slipped from her hand to the floor as she gawked at Cloud in nothing but a pair of boxer shorts.

"Sorry to have startled you," he said softly. "I'll clean that up." He grabbed a towel from the counter and bent over to wipe off the floor.

(Common sense would say he can't be that hot and be his age.) She thought for a moment. (Well wait a minute...Yuffie got together with Vincent when he was older than Cloud, chronologically. And she was sixteen! So there's nothing wrong with enjoying his body, right?) A slight blush crept over her cheeks at that thought. (I mean enjoying the _look_ of his body...) Her brain skipped a beat. (...right?)

He saw the reddish tinge on her face and misjudged the reason for her embarrassment. "Don't look like that, I'll just be louder next time I sneak up on you."

"I wouldn't care what snuck up on me, if it looked like you do," she said softly. Her eyes widened. (Did I say that out _loud_?) "Umm...I mean..."

Cloud stepped a little closer. "What do you mean?"

She shook her head.

(I think I should probably leave her well enough alone, anyway.) He glanced at the eggs she had cracked. "I though Lia had imposed some sort of vegetarian regime over this place."

"Well, we have softened her over the years. We can use milk and unfertilized eggs now...so we at least have some variety." She smiled. "So I can show off with my cheese omelets."

"Your mother was always a pretty good cook, if my memory serves me right."

Aeris nodded and went back to work, calling herself foolish for thinking that any bit of Cloud's attraction had lasted through the night.

"I'm not that hungry though," he said regretfully.

"No?" She bit her lip. "But I was making this for you."

"Nothing for yourself?"

A grin crept to her lips. "I'm not that hungry."

"And the others...?"

"Neither one of them likes eggs too well." She glanced at the window. "Hmm..." She picked up the bowl and tossed its contents out the opening onto the grass below. Sticking her head out, she examined the ground where it had landed. "Phew. No one was walking and got it on their head."

Cloud looked at her incredulously. "Most people check for that _before_ they toss things out the window."

She turned a bright shade of red and sat down at the kitchen table, her head in her arms. "Oops," she groaned, embarrassed.

"Don't take this the wrong way. But you don't seem to be all here this morning." He lightly placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's very early, you know. You could go back and have another hour or so in bed if you want."

"But I already got dressed!"

"Well, we can easily take care of that—"

Aeris looked up and met him with an astonished expression. "'We' can take care of that?"

"Oh...uhh...I didn't mean it like that," he stammered.

"Too bad," she said lightly.

His eyes widened.

She stood up. "You better get dressed. It won't do if the others come down and see you in your underwear."

Cloud stood up after her, a light shade of pink still touching his cheeks.

"I doubt they'd appreciate it as much as I do," she added as she walked up the stairs. "I better wake them up now. Might as well get an early start."

.

Cloud watched her ascend slowly, then shook his head and went to his sack. He pulled out a dark blue shirt and a pair of pants that he had purchased the day before. (At least I bought something slightly presentable before coming here. I wonder what she would think if she knew I usually don't even sleep in boxers?)

* * *

It was hard for Azura to believe that his face, so troubled when awake, could look so peaceful in sleep. But whether Patrick was at peace asleep, or more because of what happened before he went there, would remain unknown.

She had been awake since a little before dawn, watching him, as the light from the sun crept through the sky, descending to illuminate his features. As much as darkness suited his personality, the light did wonders for his looks. Her fingers had crept to stroke the stray strands of his hair, which could not decide whether to reflect silver or golden tones back, first at the moon, then the glowing sun.

He stirred and blinked his eyes at the soft morning haze surrounding him. Right in front of them was the girl he loved, the golden sunshine forming a smooth aura around her head.

"Good morning," she murmured softly.

He gave her a small smile in return. "Did you sleep okay?"

"Best ever."

He smiled a bit more. Then a thought came to him and a bit of worry crossed his face. "Are you—" he began.

Azura silenced him with a quick kiss. "I'm fine." She emphasized the two words, giving them heavy meaning. "Perfect," she whispered.

Patrick stroked her cheek softly and was about to say something to her.

.

There was a soft knock at the door.

"Yeah?" said Azura, without thinking. (Oh no. This is Pat's room.)

Aeris's voice sounded confused indeed. "Umm...can I come in?"

Patrick checked to make sure they both looked decent enough before answering. "I suppose."

The door opened and Aeris walked in. "Did I interrupt something or wake you?"

"We were just talking."

"I was going to wake you up so we could get an early start. I guess you beat me to that. How long have you two been up?" There was an invisible question in her words. It happened to be "will you tell me you've been up for a long time already, so I can assume the best of this situation?"

Patrick was never one to run from a confrontation. "I've only been awake for a moment or two. Zuri was up a little before me, I think."

She nodded.

There was a bit of "older sister reprimand" in Aeris's eyes as she continued. "Well if you want something to eat, I can make it for you." She slowly said the next part, because it honestly disturbed her. (I find them like this...she's sixteen and he's just fourteen. It could be totally innocent, yet not innocent at all!) "You should probably get dressed and come down."

"All right," said Patrick. "I'm not hungry."

"I can just have some fruit or something." Azura's words were soft, but contained no embarrassment.

From this tone, Aeris deduced that the situation must be completely innocent. "Okay," she said, her voice gaining more cheer, "Cloud and I will discuss transportation. He has a chocobo, but I doubt either of you two should try to borrow from the Undorian stables." She trotted down the stairs, her conscience about a ton lighter than it had been a minute ago.

.

"I'm glad that wasn't your mom," said Azura, giggling.

"Mother's pretty cool, actually." Patrick grabbed another pair of boxers. "It's Reeve I would have worried about. Or your parents."

She nodded in horror. "Anyone but _my_ father."

"I'm going to take a shower."

"Okay. Good thing I took mine late last night. My hair takes forever to dry."

Patrick smiled as he remembered her middle-of-the-night trek to the shower, and how he had waited for her to come back...just to let her curl up against him, damp locks and all. "I should only be a few minutes. That should give you time to 'innocently' change."

"Yay." Azura giggled once more as he walked to the bathroom.

* * *

"I think we've found a solution," said Aeris to Patrick as he came downstairs twenty minutes later.

"Oh really," he said coolly.

"Yep," said Azura cheerfully. "But there's only one stipulation."

"What is it?" he asked warily.

"Well..." She coyly met his eyes. "You wouldn't mind me riding behind you on a chocobo, right?"

He sighed and sat down. "No, of course not. For a second, you two had me worried."

"You two can take mine," said Cloud, very business-like. "Then Aeris and I will each borrow an Undorian one, or share one, depending on whether or not there are enough black or gold ones available. Those should get us to Junon quickly."

"Yes." Patrick nodded. "It's about seven a.m. now. When do you think we'll reach Junon?"

"Hmm." Aeris thought for a moment. "Well, I suppose you and I will want to do a little more packing, and then to get the chocobos...we won't leave 'til eight thirty at the earliest, probably. So we'll get there at eleven?"

Cloud nodded. "That sounds pretty accurate. Maybe a little sooner if we all get golds, but I doubt that they'll enthusiastically lend us one."

Patrick shrugged. "I killed a bunch of 'em a few years ago. I guess they'd be more eager to lend to you than to me." He wrapped an arm around Azura and gave a small smile to his sister. "Rissy...why don't you and Cloud go ahead now? Zuri and I will pack the supplies, okay?"

"Okay. And then when we get back, off to Junon it is."

"I just pray we don't cross paths with Reeve," muttered Patrick.

Azura shivered a bit and cuddled closer to him. She did not want to see another confrontation between Reeve and Patrick. After the past few days, she had sensed a bit of rage developing within Patrick. No matter how much she loved him, no matter how much she tried to kiss the pain away, this rage remained; it scared her, horribly.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

.

_Though Jenn O' Vah destroyed  
With massive pain employed  
The blessed mother still remained  
Through grievous bearings—pained  
Slipping through the mountains high  
Escaping where the evil lied  
Deep ran the Cetra naïveté;  
She could not deceive the Calamity_

_But she was not last, rather the first  
A line long meant to feel the hurt  
Of pride resounding in the air  
Heavy is the weight they bear  
Yet, at long end comes Sacrifice  
Brought to pain by some Strife  
This quest, then through tatters worn  
Brings the Son of the Sun—born_

.

He stopped reciting the translated text. "It _seems_ to make sense, doesn't it?"

"Not particularly, Red." Tifa groaned.

"I just meant in terms of telling a story. I'm sure that there is hidden meaning and metaphor within it."

"Of course. Then again, I haven't known the details of Patrick to make any connection... How long have you known?"

"Before Reeve left, he told me Patrick wasn't his son. I asked Vincent what he knew." The red creature stood and stretched. "He knew much. Though I doubt even he has any inside secrets to this scripture."

"All I know for sure is that _khazed_ is in this passage, so that means Raieyana."

"_At long end comes Sacrifice_..." he murmured. "Wouldn't that be implying that the Sacrifice is near the end of this historical account?"

"Maybe...but what is with the two synonyms in the next line? _Brought to pain by some strife_...?"

"Tifa, I think you need to go to bed."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm sorry that the implied hidden meanings aren't jumping out into my brain."

"What is Cloud's last name?"

Her eyes widened.

"And of course, 'Son of the Sun' is _Pa'at Rich_ in the runes."

"So our Cetra text predicted the very things occurring _now_?"

"Well in double meanings, I suppose." His brow furrowed. "I got some more of it translated besides that piece."

"Well go right ahead." Tifa grimaced. "You seemed to get the interesting part, anyway."

.

_On the Planet, this child has no face  
Nor in the land of Promise, or other place  
In the final age of alien hope  
The binding breaks; cut the rope  
A chance to deliver shall be freed  
Without others, cannot succeed  
One who sees, one who burns;  
One who grieves, and one who learns..._

_The age where Meteors eclipse the stars  
After the last—land escapes without scars  
Hidden poison placed by false gods  
Who resurrect our race, against the odds  
A guild twice rises from the ashes  
And with the Cetra ever clashes  
Another one is wrought anew  
But falls to greed and avarice, too_

.

_Give this prayer to those who believe  
Stand strong against those easily deceived  
A path is forged for all—  
Allow none to fall  
One more liquid orb within the deep  
Will be summoned forth from eons' sleep  
Another time for all to fight  
Remains within the endless night_

_And He, although the grains of sand  
Slip through time, still will demand  
Redemption for a deed long planned—  
Thinks penance little reprimand—  
Must take the time to understand  
That never shalt a soul be damned  
Though flames of hatred may be fanned—  
It's to the Skies he'll raise his hand..._

.

_Then never more the sickness falls  
Safe forever are the halls_

.

_More things are still left unsaid  
For true salvation—cannot be read._

* * *

_When Igmar-Boleyn burned, they had wept._

_Somehow though, there remained an inner sanctum inside them. Telling them, that they must flee, run away from an evil pursuing them. Nothing good had befallen them since the arrival of the woman named Jenova._

_They had driven her out because of the sickness, but Reiven still had answered to her, and in the end, met his own end. The dreams had told them that. The dreams had also pleaded, begged, implored them to stay alive._

_The dreams begged but would not tell them why. How can two lone survivors of a holocaust know their importance?_

.

_Riana, seven months' pregnant, struggled up the precipice. "We shouldn't go this way. It's too hard."_

_Erhiz reached a hand down and struggled, pulling her up. "It's our only hope. And _She_ could cut us off here, too."_

_Finally, Riana reached the ledge. "How can we find a place to hide? The land is small, and we have no way to cross the waters. The Calamity will catch us...my baby..." She placed a hand on her swollen abdomen. "I want to see it born."_

_"One more climb. The Planet is telling me that there is a cave right above here. We can go deep into it and be safe. Build a fire and be warm."_

_She sat down, with labored breathing. "I can't. I'm too weak. Can't we rest?"_

_"The Planet says to hurry..."_

_"Well the Planet isn't with child." Riana sat down on the ledge, shivering slightly._

_Erhiz looked at her companion. "Nay, Riana, we must go on. Your lips are purplish."_

_"It's a trick of light. I feel perfectly warm."_

_"No. You are being tricked by the cold. We must go to that cave; we must!"_

.

_A voice resounded from what seemed to be the sky. "I cannot believe you two stayed out here without cover for so long. I had feared I would not find you." A slender form descended from on high. Jenova, levitating in the air, reached out her arms. "Why not let me carry you off? Surely you will reach a better place once I am done with you."_

_Erhiz stepped forward. "Do not try to lie to us."_

_"Lie? I thought your 'Promised Land' _was_ a good place to be," she said with scorn._

_The two women became frozen in terror._

_"Tell me how Riana escaped from Reiven, for that is all I wish to learn from you. The village was Reiven's doing." Jenova made the pretense of sorrow coat her features. "I tried to help him, but he went crazy in the end despite that. His jealousy for this woman burned, and he vowed to kill her child. He told me he had."_

_Riana's voice was barely above a whisper. "My father had taken a new wife, and she was carrying my half-brother or sister. Reiven slew her, not me. He foolishly went to the wife's chambers in the chief's residence. My husband and I lived in other quarters."_

_"Interesting." The alien had used the distraction of Riana's story to come closer to the pair._

_Suddenly, Erhiz knew what was in the mind of the enemy. Shoving Riana towards the rock wall, she yelled "Flee up to the cave, Riana...flee! Your son must live or the Planet will have pain eternal." Then she dove onto the floating form of Jenova, hoping her attack would cause them both to hurtle to the ground._

_Catching her breath, Riana struggled up the craggy face of Gaia's Cliff, making progress despite the hindrance of her swollen belly._

.

_Jenova winced as the girl's body collided with hers. Plucking it up before it could fall, she stared coldly into Erhiz's eyes. "I shall have my wish. The simple devices of your Planet do not affect me. You can remember that as you slowly die." She gently tossed her to the ground, making sure the impact would not be hard enough to kill the girl—at least not instantly._

_Meanwhile, Riana had managed to get her arms up on the next ledge. She felt like they would break off as she struggled to pull her enlarged body over the edge. At long last, she finally made it on top and saw it. The cave mouth was lying right in front of her._

_"_The Planet makes a sanctuary for the Son of the Sun's birth. Enter the cave, and it will be a haven._"_

_Riana did not know where the voice had come from, but she nearly wept for joy as she bolted to the cave's entrance. Then she fell and heard a cackle of glee._

.

_Jenova had the pregnant woman by the ankle. She slowly dragged her away from the cave. (This time, I shall do my own dirty deed.)_

_

* * *

_

("_Precious mother. That was all you were born to do. Die and give birth, that was your destiny. Far below mine. You shall awaken as I reawaken, for when I kill him, you must be aware. It is better that way."_

Awaken? What is the purpose of being awake? When the events of my life play out as they will...I have no control. I need not be awake.

_"The way of life on your precious planet will not allow that. You shall be aware, as the whole sphere shall be aware, when I rip your precious son's throat from him. He will not succeed against me, though you and your Planet have. This once. I will not be so thoughtless next time. I thought your pain had made you weak."_

Pain does not weaken me. It tires me. All my life I have been grieving for people. I cannot believe that anyone would play on that grief.

_"Of course I would. All I needed was someone willing to be my next 'Crazy Scientist' slave. He has plans. He's captured Alcor. The world spins while you sleep. Awake. Awake."_

Why should I follow the sound of your voice to the light?

_"Because..."_

Why? Tell me...once and for all, who are you?)

.

Raieyana sat up suddenly. "Why must I wake up?"

Red XIII looked at her in amazement. ("Please come back to us. Wake up, we need you," I had said to her. What sort of development is this?) "I asked."

"My world has been many dreams and visions." She blinked. "How do I know that you are real?"

Suddenly, a ninja star spun by her, landing mere centimeters above her head, quivering after its landing in the wall behind her.

"Why did I ever let _you_ watch her?" snarled the lion.

Yuffie smirked. "Is the star real...Ray?"

Ninja stars required a special type of handling, which Raieyana had learned and, thankfully, learned well. She taught this handling in Undor-Hai. Turning around, she cautiously removed the star. Glancing at the other two in the room, she raised an eyebrow. "Little proof. I know how to use these."

Red XIII and Yuffie sighed.

Raieyana shrugged and deliberately brought a tip to her arm, slicing a small line. "Ouch," she said softly. "I guess I am awake."

Blood spilled from her cut and onto the blanket covering her. "I'll go get my Cure materia," said Red XIII quickly.

"Don't bother. It doesn't work on me. No materia ever worked on me, except for after the time I died."

"Why is that?" Yuffie looked amazed.

"I'm not sure. The same went for Aysta...I always thought it was something strange Hojo had done to us." Raieyana glanced at them. "Someone _could_ go get something I could use for a bandage though."

"Oh right!" Red XIII ran off.

Yuffie and Raieyana smiled at each other.

"Welcome back," said the ninja.


	22. Part 6: Deserts of Deception - Chapter ...

Part 6— Deserts of Deception

.

Chapter 22

.

"Can one of you please tell me something?"

Ishmael looked up. "What is it, Dad?"

Reeve gingerly shifted the shirt of his disguise. "Why is it always grunge?"

Kati giggled.

Tossing a concerned glance at his fiancee, Ishmael grinned. "I don't think that laughing at my dad is the safest thing to be doing right now."

"Aw, what's the harm in it?"

"Well, I'd kind of like to have you alive for our—"

She held a finger to her lips. He read her mind through her eyes. (Wait until we've made our announcement, Ish.)

He smiled and wrapped his arms around her. Barret and Cid stepped out onto the deck, obviously uncomfortable in their own disguises.

"What's with the paste-on mohawk and all this gold jewelry?" demanded Barret.

"What's with the pipe, glasses, and this odd flappy hat?" Cid snarled.

"Elementary, my dear Cid," murmured Sean, setting off peals of laughter from the others.

"You know," said Reeve, "I've decided that my disguise isn't that bad."

"Is it off to the Shinra building then?" asked Cid, as he squirmed in his beige trenchcoat.

"Uh no, Cid," said Ishmael, "we're going to the Alcor building."

"Same difference."

"My dad started Alcor!"

"Nice help that is to us now, ain't it?"

"Oh, just hurry up and get your ass down that rope ladder."

Cid glanced up at him. "I like your spirit, kid, but if I weren't about to go fight some idiots, I'd have to beat your fucking ass." He descended down the rope ladder.

"And if you weren't stricken with emphysema, I might actually let you try," muttered Ishmael.

"Son," said Reeve with a tone of warning in his voice.

"I'm joking, Dad!" He turned and was down the rope ladder.

"I sure hope this isn't too hard," said Kati softly.

Reeve looked towards the city, at the high top of the Alcor building. (Me too, Kati.) He then took his turn to climb down from the Airship.

* * *

"I just can't believe that they wouldn't even let us take out one gold chocobo," said Cloud. "If they had given us that we could've bypassed Junon."

Aeris slapped the reins on the black chocobo that the Undorian stable manager had insisted she drive. "I don't know. We probably could bypass Junon on this one, but it would take forever."

"Yes. I don't know if the shallows have shifted in the past, oh, twenty or so years since I've had to use them." He became aware of how his own words dated him, and how it made him feel like even his hands on the young girl's waist made him a dirty old man. "I just hope my chocobo is safe with Patrick," he murmured softly into her ear, having no idea how well the boy could hear him.

"Oh," she said lightly, "Zuri seems to be doing wonders for his personality. I'd be surprised to see him hurt a fly in her presence. That is, unless that fly bit her or something. Then watch out, buggie!" She grinned.

Even if Cloud had believed in reincarnation, he knew it would have been impossible in this case for the flower girl's soul to be in Raieyana's daughter. (I spoke to her on the other side when Rissy was just a little one...but...she is a lot like her grandmother. So much more than Raieyana ever was.)

Catching up with Patrick and Azura, Aeris called out to them. "We're getting pretty close. We might want to take it down a notch."

Azura shook her head. "The quicker the better. Besides, has anyone thought of what we're going to do with the chocobos on the ship? We'll need them to get to the Canyon."

"Del Sol runs another ferry to the coast outside of Cosmo Canyon. We'll send Blackie back to Undor-Hai, but..." She turned back to Cloud. "What about yours?"

"I'll tell him to go to Cosmo Canyon."

"He's that well trained?" she asked in surprise.

"We're going to see today. If nothing else, I'll borrow a Gold chocobo from the farm and send it back when I get home." Suddenly, the chocobo stopped and Cloud was thrown off of it.

"Oh no!" Aeris hopped down. "Did I not tell you we were close?"

Sitting up and rubbing his head, he raised an eyebrow at her. "You didn't tell me that you couldn't handle a chocobo."

"Oh...the Undorian chocobos suck." She giggled.

.

Patrick walked over to them, leading Cloud's chocobo by the reins. "You wanted to send this guy some psychic traveling directions or something?"

"Sure." Cloud lightly hopped up and patted his chocobo's forehead. "Hey buddy...we're heading towards Cosmo Canyon now. Do you got that?"

The chocobo warked and lightly ran off, towards the ocean.

"Let's hope that worked."

"I'm sure it did!" Aeris grabbed his arm.

He was startled a bit, but regained control of himself and flashed her a smile. "C'mon, let's get in and out of this city as quickly as possible."

* * *

"Are you sure you shouldn't be resting?"

"I woke up to learn I'd been in bed for days," said Raieyana dryly, "so rest is probably the last thing I need right now."

"Maybe," said Tifa. "But you don't need to be trying to translate anything."

"I'm not." She smiled. "I'm correcting the work you guys did."

"And?" Red XIII leaned forward.

"It looks fine as far as I can tell. Did you guys stay up all night or something doing this?"

They looked at each other guiltily.

"I thought so." She took a deep breath and began to think to herself. These new pieces of information had both raised and answered questions in her mind. It was beginning to seem that everything in her life had been planned, completely. (Well, not to a "t"...) The prophecies had no word of Reno...or of the events with Ryald.

The great cat looked at her with concern in his eyes. "Are you sure you're not tired?"

"Yes." She bit her lip. "But I just wish that Reeve wasn't away..."

"He wouldn't have left if it weren't important."

"Oh I know that."

"Besides, I have the feeling that if he had any idea when you would...recover, he would have scheduled his life around that."

Her eyes opened wide. "I'm not doubting him, Red! We've been married for fourteen years, which takes trust. I just miss him, that's all..." A faraway look entered her eyes and she gazed out the window. "I hope that he'll be okay...with all that mission will take."

Tifa looked at the worried woman and sighed. (I don't envy her anymore. Not now, when I know all that she's been through...and...her son is in the wilderness. Fending both for himself and for Azura, when he's just a child.)

* * *

Dirk laughed as he traveled down the elevator to the underwater laboratory. He had connected it to the Alcor building... (...but I'm going to cut it off now, for my own safety. Even if those fools manage to recapture their company, I have all the information I need.) He held, in his hand, a computer disk. It was labeled "The Truth About Shinra and the Jenova Project."

He had conveniently taken it from a company lockbox, in Reeve's private office, that his workers had hacked into. Nevermind the fact that the lockbox had been legally bequeathed to one Patrick Jordan on his eighteenth birthday.

Or the fact that it meant Reeve had somehow come to possess a copy of Raieyana's abandoned book...

.

(Soon I will have all the information... _...needed to set my plans into motion..._)

Dirk exited into a hallway, then entered a small control room. Entering the necessary codes, he watched on screen as millions of gallons of water flowed into the elevator shaft. The codes necessary for the removal of the water could only be accessed from down below.

(_I think it is time that you had some more medicine_.)

Nodding, the man left for his personal part of the laboratory. Inserting the disk into his computer, he then walked to a refrigeration unit. Inside lay vial upon vial of a glowing liquid. He removed one and grabbed a cellophane-wrapped syringe from the counter. Opening it, he then slowly extracted all of the liquid into the shaft of his instrument.

Dirk rolled up his sleeve and touched his inner arm, feeling for the vein. As he slowly injected the liquid into his bloodstream, a voice within him gave praise.

(_One more puppet for me... The last battle for Pa'at Rich...Patrick...whichever name the wretch goes by. Before I'm done, he'll wish he never had been born. The son of the sun is no match for the Jenn—the Calamity._

_As Meteor blocked the sun, so shall I block him. My race transcends time and space. We transcend this Planet and any defense it may call, and through this, bring upon to it its destruction. So was my order, so shall it be done._

_Thy will be done._)


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

.

_Bright blue eyes watched every movement of the bewitching figure as it moved among the people of the village Azrael-Merdot, known as the gem of the North._

_Asula knew this had been the home base of the others for close to a century. While Igmar-Boleyn had been a nomadic group's winter hunting grounds, this group had broken away from the Cetra way of life—and the Planet._

_The girl settled herself back down into the brush, smoothing back light brown hair. (I have been cursed. Cursed to be the only one left.) She had searched ashes, bent over frozen corpses chanting healing spells, to no avail. The young, beautiful magic prodigy could not reverse time or completely defy the rules of nature._

_So the tears ran down her face. She, who once thought she held the heavens in her hands, now knew the truth. The heavens could wrench her fragile body with the scorching heat of a thousand stars._

_To emerge from such a gauntlet alone truly was a curse. She prayed with every fiber of her being that such a curse was shared by her extraterrestrial adversary. Erhiz had told the tribal elders to pray that the Calamity had arrived alone._

_Erhiz had understood a lot of things. The price for that understanding was her life. Brushing back the tears became much harder, as Asula was now weeping openly. Sobs wracked her delicate frame; she held herself, as there was no one left to do it for her._

_"Things cannot continue on this way forever," she murmured, "something has to give out, and if it is me...the Planet will give out soon after."_

_For she remembered the last thing Erhiz had said to her: "I can see that this time, Asula, it will be up to you. You cannot eliminate her, but only you have the strength to slow her down enough for the Planet to prepare._

_"When the right moment finally comes, Asula, he will be there by your side."_

.

_Pa'at Rich ben lumine auglina Jenn O'Vahh_—the son of the sun will shine brighter than the Calamity from the skies.

* * *

"I never knew it was this big!" Kati whispered loudly.

"Welcome to the city, country mouse." Cid laughed like he had just made the funniest joke in the world.

Brother and sister exchanged meaningful "is fifty-three too young to be senile" looks before Sean shushed him. "We gotta look inconspicuous and not suspicious, sir."

"But not uncommitted."

"Err...right, Mr. Highwind." Kati tapped her foot impatiently. "What diversion tactics do you have planned?"

"I'm gonna pretend to be a disgruntled customer of Alcor and cuss a lot."

"What about us?"

"You can cuss, too, just don't tell your mother."

Sean shook his head. "Nevermind. We'll back you up. Ready when you are."

Cid tossed his cigarette to the ground, extinguishing it with his shoe. "Let's get this field trip over and done with."

.

"They just went in, Dad. We can get ready and go right behind them."

"Then we gonna _bust_ these asses!"

"Just try to contain the excitement, Barret," said Reeve. "The most important goal is to save Marlene, Yorlain, and the rest of the executive board."

Ishmael was still watching the Alcor lobby carefully from their hiding spot. "They haven't sent out the signal yet," he said, frowning.

Reeve shrugged. "I wouldn't be too concerned yet. Maybe it was harder for security to be distracted by Cid than we all thought."

.

It was almost like a platoon of the old Soldiers had stuck around just to play body guards to crooks. Cid had known the place would be heavily guarded after a violent takeover, but these guys were supposedly keeping a tame face in front of the public.

Not after today. (We look like normal customers. Why did they ambush us?) Sean had never expected to use his Undorian training, even for this distraction bit. However, he decided to shower many expensive gifts at Raieyana's feet after her broadsword techniques became his lifesavers.

Kati stumbled and fell, about to be cornered by three huge men, and completely unable to get the signal off to the others outside. (It was Arctic Blast for the go-ahead, Bolt Plume for help...) she thought as she dropped her katana for a shuriken, hurling it at her opponents. Grabbing for her weapons, she looked up in time to see one of the men reach for her leg.

The soldier fell down after Cid's burst of third level fire, rolling to extinguish the flames before turning his murderous thoughts onto the middle-aged pilot.

She had forgotten about the other two, and one repeated his friend's move, successfully whipping her feet out from under her. The man grinned viciously before wrenching one of her feet violently to the left.

The loud shattering of her ankle filled the room, but her scream was carried on the wind.

* * *

The trek through Junon had been relatively easy, but quite cautious, so far. The quartet was linked by their common goal of not running into Reeve's group. So far, so good. Junon was eerily quiet. Cloud had seen it like this a few times before; the others were perplexed by it. Truth be told, Junon was a very intuitive city.

The group was more focused on themselves, though. Problem was, and always had been, this: the Alcor building was on the only street that connected Upper and Lower Junon. Therefore, the only way to reach the docks was to pass by it.

"I wish we had thought to get disguises," lamented Aeris.

"I'm sure the others are quite busy with their work," said Azura. "If we just hurry by quickly and quietly, they'd never ever notice us if they _did_ manage to see us."

"It's really the best chance we've got." Cloud looked thoughtful. "We can't risk the time looking for disguises here. But Patrick and Azura look quite striking, I must say. Let's keep them on the inside of the sidewalk. Should mostly block them from view of the street."

The others nodded and arranged themselves. With a collective deep breath, they began walking towards the building.

They were just in time to hear a feminine wail and watch as two dark haired men began to race to the entrance, followed by a burly man with a gun arm–they recognized the trio all too well.

Someone also recognized the scream. "Oh god," said Azura softly, "that was Kati."

.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, Patrick." She sniffled. "She must be in pain. They must be in trouble."

"I'm sure they're fine. Ishmael, Reeve, and Barret just went in to help." Patrick's eyes narrowed.

A tear rolled down her cheek. "Pat..."

His look softened and he turned towards Cloud and Aeris. "Is there any way for us to gauge the battle from this distance?"

"Well I used to hear rumors about this strong materia user...who possessed the ability to remote view using a Sense materia..." Cloud's voice trailed off. "That was over twenty-five years ago, though."

"Do either of you two have a Sense?"

Aeris reached into her armlet and yanked out a yellow stone, handing it to him. "Thanks." Patrick turned to Azura. "I want you to try using this, Zuri. So we'll know if we need to help them."

"How?" She looked bewildered as she slid the orb into an empty slot on her armlet.

"Normally," said Cloud, "the energy of Sense focuses your mind towards the interior of an enemy. You can feel its strengths and weaknesses, plus use its health to estimate how many more hits it can take. What Patrick wants you to do is focus inside the building."

"Yes," Patrick said. "Concentrate on the entrance and lobby once you begin. It might also help to think of Kati, Sean, Barret or the others while you build energy."

"I'll try my best," she said softly, secretly relieved that she had put the orb into her armlet. Materia seemed to work better the closer it was to her body. She closed her eyes, concentrating.

The air around them crackled with energy, and Cloud felt an odd twinge inside. With all his experience, he had never seen something like it before. This twinge turned to shock when he realized the materia wasn't even glowing. (She's doing this all on her own.)

A yellow glow coursed around her skin, yet Azura's eyes were closed tight. (Show me. I need to see... Open my eyes—) "_I'lionne telemaar_!" In a flash, the vision came to her. Six people, outnumbered, and slowly fading. If she concentrated on a certain person, she not only saw them clearly, but felt every throb of their wounds...

"The _do_ need our help." Azura opened her eyes.

The other three nodded, and Patrick stepped forward. "We'll all go in. Stay close to me, do the spells you know. I'll protect you." He leaned over, kissing her forehead, whispering in her ear. "_I need you._"

As they ran towards the entrance of the Alcor building, to protect the very people they wanted to avoid, Patrick wondered what the others thought of Azura and her power. Her awesome power...he knew by the looks on their faces that they had seen, too.

Azura had not just brought the vision to herself, but to all of them.


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

.

The dull glow of the monitor lit up the room in restrained flashes. "I told you we'd be ready for them, sir."

"Yes, beautiful." Dirk peered at the images transmitted by the Alcor security cameras.

"You were so smart, devising this takeover plan and _convincing_ all those men to help us out."

"Child's play." Suddenly, he leaned forward. "Who the hell is that?" he yelled, pointing towards the screen.

"Hold on." The man froze the image and zoomed in. "Does that help, sir?"

The color drained from Dirk's face. (Can that be... _...how did he get here?_) "I must go up there, now!"

"The elevator will take hours to drain..."

"Well get me a sub, anything! I am the only one who knows how to quell the power of that young man!"

"I can arrange a team for you to give a directive to—"

"That will not work. I cannot say why, but it must be me." (_I never expected the chance...for Pa'at Rich to be so close to me, not knowing his power, his identity, or the truths of the Planet itself..._

_I can make my foe a tool, a puppet. A weapon stronger than any forged—for it was one forged to defeat me._)

* * *

Cloud glanced around the lobby, forcing his mind to make a valid assessment of the chaos. All in all, Reeve's group was doing badly, and he wasn't sure if making the number go up to ten versus about sixty would do much good.

Azura broke from Patrick's side, rushing to her sister's aid, even shoving Ishmael out of her way. "Go fight," she urged him, even as she charged power for a spell.

Regen fell over Kati's form in a green Mako rain, softly and carefully allowing the fracture to knit. Although it wasn't instant, it was the surest way for her ankle to heal.

"Does that help?"

Kati nodded, her eyes widening as she realized her healer was Azura. "How...?" she murmured.

"Zuri!" Patrick ran over to them. "I told you to stay with me."

She pointed to Kati and raised an eyebrow. "I'm here to help, not to hide. The others need your help fighting more than I do."

He touched her hand. "The second I step away, I want to concentrate on a Shell spell around you and Kati. Use this." He handed her a green Master Magic materia.

"Pat..."

"You'll make better use of it than I." With one last caring gaze, Patrick turned and threw himself into the fray.

"I saw him look at his mother the same way, on the night she went crazy," said Kati.

"He viciously protects anything he loves." Azura steadily concentrated on the barrier, creating a domed force field around them.

.

Ishmael ran to attack a guard head on. Leaning back, he prepared to give his axe a strong swing. Suddenly, his opponent pitched forward, lacking a head. In his place stood a green-eyed blonde. "Rissy?"

"Duck!" she screamed, swiping the space his head had just occupied with her sabre.

After hearing another head thud to his right, Ishmael stood up. "You made it in time for the fun."

"Brought some help, too," she said softly.

Looking just beyond Aeris, he saw Azura steadily holding a shell around herself and a healing Kati. To his right, little brother Patrick was using his 4x cut materia to maul a group of the guards. To his left, a strange blond-haired man was rushing to the aid of his father.

.

(I suppose it was stupid to taunt a person whose friends outnumber you.) Reeve was pinned firmly to the floor, a dagger held to his neck.

"I promise you...this will definitely _not_ be fast." The guard chuckled cruelly, slowly slicing into Reeve's left arm.

Then his head was gone.

"Today's death of choice: decapitation," joked Reeve. "Thank—" His voice died as he saw the man who had saved him.

"I owed you one," said Cloud. He suddenly pointed his sword behind him. The guard running in for the ambush ended up impaling himself before Reeve could give out a warning.

"Nice," he managed.

"I think we got most of them. Adding four more to the mix as you ran in probably turned the tide."

As if on cue, Cid, Barret, and Sean finished off the remaining forces, and the group gathered. The lobby seemed eerily quiet, but maybe that aspect of the atmosphere came from the bodies littering the floor.

"Oh God, how gross!" exclaimed Sean, after stepping in a pool of blood.

"Four extra people, Cloud? I count nine of us," Reeve said.

Cloud looked around. "Hmm..."

With Kati leaning on her shoulder, Azura walked up to them. "Where's Pat?" she asked.

Nine pairs of eyes peered around the room and its bodies. Whether living or dead, Patrick was gone.

* * *

"We're very close to the rear sub dock, Mr. Earlham," announced the captain.

"Good," said Dirk, "then I shall use the cargo elevator. I have an idea where dear Pat may be."

"Closing in—"

"Hush...hush..." (_I can begin to speak to him now...this will be easier than I thought..._)

* * *

Patrick dashed through the corridors of one of the upper floors. He wished he had paid more attention to Reeve's descriptions of the Alcor building. (Where the hell are these cells? This was supposed to be quick...the others downstairs might be in trouble without me...

_Oh, you know why you're here. You left the others because you don't belong with them._

Just great. Little psycho voice...not now.

_I'm not just a voice. I'm someone very real, here to tell you the truth. What the others have grown afraid to admit to themselves, but know in their hearts..._

Some would never lie to me. I have people who love me. Zuri...

_Zuri is scared to death of you...even now..._)

Patrick fell to his knees, consumed by a vision.

.

_Azura was sitting in his living room, back in Undor-Hai, with her parents. "...Patrick would hurt me..."_

(No!

_Imagine what she would think...how quickly she would turn her back and run from you...if she knew the truth..._)

.

_Raieyana turning to Reeve, hand resting on her flat abdomen. "...that was the purpose of the rape..."_

.

_Raieyana sitting on a dirty cot next to a man with a striking resemblance to the night-time intruder. She was beginning to show... "I'm so scared, Reno. The baby's growing too fast...it's too strong..."_

.

_Inside a cave, a near term Raieyana, slowly writing words in a notebook. The lines and strokes blurred together, but two words were clearly visible._

_"...a monster..."_

.

"No..." Patrick moaned, shouting out loud. "It's all lies!"

He heard a reply. "No, it isn't."

Spinning around to face the source of the sound, he drew his sword. "You're going to die."

"Calm down," it continued pleasantly. Dirk Earlham stepped from the shadow of an open doorway. "I come to you, alone, and armed only with this." He held up a computer disk.

Patrick looked at it warily. "Wha—"

"Don't worry, it's not going to explode or anything. Let me take a few steps closer, so you can see the label. Whose writing could that be?"

Bewildered, he took a step back. "It...It's Mother's."

"Ah, yes. Raieyana...she's a clever one. On this disk, she figured out how and why you exist. She never wanted you to..."

"Give it to me."

"You can have it, but I ask you to discard your weapon, and come with me to embrace who you truly are. Afterwards, if you wish, you can go straight back home."

"Yeah right." Patrick prepared to attack.

"Wait. Move one more inch with that sharp thing, and I'll send enough men to make sure the _pieces_ of your friends in the lobby are never found."

He dropped the sword and walked to Dirk. Patrick gazed into his eyes and felt the abyss of a black hole.

"It is good you still think yourself a man. My tactics would have failed otherwise."

* * *

The others watched Azura in amazement, a yellow glow surrounding her. "I got him. He went up to rescue the prisoners...but he's in trouble!" She ran off towards the elevator.

No one else snapped out of the trance quite so easily. Cloud stood and slowly walked, followed by Reeve. Ishmael stood, but Azura stopped him. "You need to stay with them until they wake up."

The elevator doors closed, and the engine hummed as the three zoomed towards the 55th floor. "Patrick and some puny guy is what I saw...why do you say he's in trouble, Zuri?" asked Cloud.

"Because I could feel what he felt."

A chime sounded, and the doors popped open. They ran down the corridor.

* * *

(_Lean over and grab his arm...tightly._) Dirk did as he was told.

"Hey...what the—" All of a sudden, Patrick's mind exploded with visions. All ugly, all dark... (...all me.

_That's because it _is_ you._

You don't sound the same...

_That's because I'm something different. I'm not someone to guide you._) Patrick put a hand to his head and groaned. (_I _am_ you._)

.

Suddenly, Cloud, Reeve, and Azura burst into the area. "Pat," said Azura cautiously.

Patrick's eyes looked cold; his voice was indifferent. "What are you banging around and looking so worried over?"

"I—I saw you. Pat?" She looked confused.

"This young man has made a very important decision today." Dirk smiled. "He's coming with me. In return, I'm letting you guys have a little more time to live before I have you killed."

"We'll see about that." Cloud pointed his Ultima Weapon at the man.

Patrick glared. "I'd think twice about that, if I were you. Daddy," he sneered.

"Pat, you don't need to do this!" Azura ran up to him, grabbing his hand.

He wrenched it away, slapping her so hard she fell to her knees. (Zuri...

_...expected this from you, from me. Do what you were born to do._) Patrick turned away. "Don't tell me what I need to do if you can't trust me to handle myself." He nodded to Dirk.

.

Azura watched through her tears as Dirk cast a powerful Exit spell, encircling the two men with heavy mist. When the air cleared, the men were gone.

Patrick was gone.

Azura wept as Patrick's two fathers stood in shocked silence.


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

.

"Is she still in her room?"

"Yes," said Yuffie softly. "But things are a little better. I think I got her to eat a piece of bread."

"Are you going to hop up and down, then spin in a circle?" Vincent smiled sadly.

"Right now, it _is_ enough to make me do that old victory dance of mine." She sighed. "I wish we could find out what exactly happened with Patrick. The three that saw him last aren't exactly being talkative, though."

"Did you ask Zuri if I could see her today?"

"Yeah. She still says no."

His eyes closed in pain. "I just want to tell her I forgive her."

Wrapping her arms around him, Yuffie held him tight. "I know Vince, I know."

* * *

"Is this sand taken?"

Cloud looked up into a pair of soulful green eyes. "Of course not, there's always room for one more to watch the canyon at dusk."

"Sane people stay around the Cosmo Candle. I didn't expect you to be sitting right in my favorite spot of the desert." Aeris sat down next to him on the blanket.

"Well...I do kinda hope you're the only other one out to find this spot."

"One of those moods?"

"I don't think anyone's broken out of 'one of these moods' yet."

She smiled weakly. "I guess not. We freed those people at Alcor, but the company isn't safe...and I've lost my brother. I wish I could've told him that I didn't think he was an outcast."

Cloud carefully wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "I'm sure he knows it somewhere deep inside. We just have to find a way to get down to him, and reach his inside." He lowered his eyes. "I know that from experience."

"Then there's hope for Patrick." Aeris touched his chest, right over his heart. "If you came out of it, so can he. We just have to be strong, those of us that love him."

"It wasn't easy, Rissy. I was plagued for years."

"I can see...that if we can win him back...we'll be able to make sure no one is ever troubled like you again."

He met her eyes. "I was told that before...in a dream."

"Rather convincing, wasn't it? If it managed to get you out of hiding and into store-bought clothes." Aeris grinned. "You know, for Pat's sake, this mood has to break sooner or later."

"Pat?"

"Zuri's little name has grown on me."

"He's worth saving, even if he weren't my son."

"We can only save him by being our old selves. Daring, sarcastic, and everything." Suddenly, Aeris hugged him tight. "I'm depressed too, but I'm getting sick of all the doom and gloom down there."

He stroked her hair thoughtfully. "Yeah...I'm action guy...starting to get antsy after two weeks of this."

"I'll talk to Zuri later. She'll be important."

"Yeah." Cloud sighed. "I think we missed sunset."

"Oh, I'm sorry. And now it's dark...gloomy time?" She smiled.

"Nah, Riss. I was still looking at something beautiful."

Cloud had been expecting a blush or some words of denial, but was very surprised. There was a barely audible "thanks," and then a set of soft, full lips pressed against his own...then the world ceased to spin.

* * *

Tifa had probably exhausted Cosmo Canyon's supply of black clothing, all of which was now residing in the closet where Azura had been staying. She had been there in Raieyana's old private room, ever since she stepped off the Airship from Junon.

Not that it really mattered what she wore. Azura hadn't left the room, except to bathe. She barely touched the trays of food Yuffie carried in to her.

From day one, she had made it clear. She wasn't coming out, and only Yuffie and Tifa could enter.

She didn't cry, shout, write, or sleep. Mostly, she sat on the bed, which hadn't been _un_made since she'd arrived.

No one had any idea what she had been doing.

.

Yuffie knocked softly on the closed door. "Honey?" After a minute or so without an answer, she cautiously opened it.

The room was empty.

Gasping, she glanced around the room to confirm her fears. Turning to the hallway, she called out. "Zuri?"

"Yes, Mother?"

Yuffie whirled back around. Much to her disbelief, Azura was right there, sitting on the still-made bed. "Umm..." She paused, confused. "Someone asked to speak with you."

"I don't want to see him. Still."

"It's not your father. It's Raieyana. She'd like to—"

"All right. But tell her I couldn't bear for it to be very long."

"Sweetie, she'll know." Yuffie walked away to get her.

.

Azura laid down against the pillows. (That was a close one. She almost thought I was gone.) She wasn't quite sure when exactly she realized that her magic could be cast without materia, but she had been practicing ever since. She'd invented spells never seen before on the books.

It had been a simple progression, that day. Float had become a complete levitation, which had turned into a mist transformation. She was getting very close to a teleportation spell, better than a simple Exit.

If she could target another person as well, she could abduct Patrick and force him back, she thought. (Even if it does work...and he can be made like he was again, would he even recognize _me_ anymore?)

.

A soft voice broke the silence. "Azura?"

"Mrs. Jordan."

"No need for the formalities. Raieyana actually has less syllables." She nodded to the door. "May I?"

"Please."

She closed it. "I think everyone else is afraid to say something, so I'll be the sensible one. You can't lock yourself in here forever. Patrick won't be saved like this."

"Oh no?" Azura dared Raieyana to challenge her, with her eyes.

"Of course not. Even if you can manage to magick yourself in there, wherever he is, you wouldn't take him by force. One of you would die."

"I don't care if I do."

Raieyana shrugged. "Too bad. You'd care if _he_ died, others care about you, and if he's saved, he will care a whole damn lot."

"So what," Azura said, rolling her eyes, "do _you_ have a way to get him?"

"I would never suggest that. This is a delicate situation. I think it's better to work together than alone. Even if Reeve and your father are wary of him and this whole mess, there are others here who really want the same thing you do."

"That's nice." She turned her head.

"If you cared, you'd get your ass outside so everyone could help you."

Azura stood up and ran over, enraged. "How dare you tell me what I feel!"

"I'm daring enough to try for results." Raieyana smiled sadly. "I got you off the bed, didn't I?"

Ashamed of herself, she looked down at her feet. "I'm afraid we won't ever get him back."

Hugging her, Raieyana attempted words of comfort. "If you let the fear lock you up inside, you never will."

"I have to find him" The tears began slowly. Hanging on for dear life, sobs wrenched her body, Azura finally let out the emotions that she had been hiding inside.

* * *

Reeve was sitting next to Vincent at the tavern. "I'm torn. I can't just ignore what instinct has been telling me for years...but Zuri's face...and his eyes...it wasn't Patrick. It's something that I helped build."

Vincent simply stared at his drink. Scotch on the rocks. Hard times called for hard drinks.

"I hope that the real Patrick hasn't...died."

"If he has, so will my daughter."

"She's stronger than that Vince—"

He held up his hand, to quiet Reeve. "Tifa and Red found that prophecy. Without Patrick...it may turn out that we all can just sign our death certificates."

"Reeve." Tifa quickly walked over to join them. "Raieyana wanted to know if you could find Rissy."

"I think she has this spot out in the desert..."

"You should probably get her. Ray and Zuri want to talk about a plan for finding Patrick."

Tifa ran out of the bar with Reeve. After a couple blinks, Vincent raised his drink to his mouth and downed the entire glass.

* * *

"Sir!"

Cold eyes gazed down at the man from atop a gold chocobo. "What is your report?"

"All the caves here are empty of any Mako, let alone a large piece of red materia...just like the civilians said."

(_A wild goose chase...my time wouldn't have been wasted if those damn simpletons hadn't _looked_ like liars. They must pay..._

But this is Zuri's home.

_...the better to show that Patrick has finally embraced his true self._

I won't let this happen!

_Just close these eyes and feel the rage. There's a reason why you always embraced it before..._)

Patrick pointed his mount east, toward the Nibel mountains. "You can call the other men off. Tell Earlham the next target is Nibel."

"Yes, sir." The man turned to leave.

"Oh, one more thing." Patrick grinned. "Burn Wutai. Burn it to the ground and scatter the ashes."

* * *

Aeris lay down on the blanket, pulling Cloud down on top of her.

He kissed her gently, then raised an eyebrow. "You're gonna have so much sand in your hair."

"Wanna help wash it out later?"

"How'd you get ideas like that? You keep telling me you're like a little school girl."

"I can't help it." She reached up, stroking his face. "They come every time I look at you."

"I keep wondering about that, about us. It's not worth it to go on if this is merely physical."

"Can any people under these life and death circumstances come together and leave without a connection?"

Her answer came as he ran his hand along the length of her body, as he kissed her with a hunger known only to those who have been denied love.

.

Reeve saw this tender exchange as he reached the top of the plateau. If this had happened a couple weeks earlier, before Patrick had turned his back, Reeve would have killed Cloud. Or, at the very least, have wanted to.

But he had seen the pain in Cloud's eyes, and the gentleness in his touch as he led Azura away from Junon, even as she cried. There was no more room inside for the anger.

Reeve turned around and slowly walked back the same way he came.


	26. Part 7: Firestarter - Chapter 26

Part 7— Firestarter

Chapter 26

.

Aeris cheerfully stepped inside Tifa's house, oblivious of whatever somber moods that may have been lurking inside. Cloud, however, moved a bit more carefully as he followed her. Perhaps he was on the lookout for her father.

Raieyana looked up from the kitchen table as they entered the room. She had been munching on a bag of roasted seeds, a very Undorian habit she had picked up from Lia years ago. "Thank goodness you're finally here, Rissy! Tifa sent your father out looking for you nearly an hour ago."

"I was just outside. What's the reason?"

"Zuri has some ideas about finding Patrick. Since she was so eager, I figured we should start as soon as possible." Raieyana shrugged a bit. "It's not life or death right now, as far as I know. Either way, I got to looking at this prophecy more while I was waiting."

"Does it really apply to anything?"

"Very much so. But, before we get into this, there's something I need to tell you—about Patrick."

"Besides the fact that Cloud is his father?"

"Cloud is—" She paused and looked at the man in question. "Did _you_ say something?"

As he shook his head, Aeris answered. "No, Mom, I just knew one day. It's been happening for awhile now...this thing where I just realize the truth...maybe since the time you got sick."

Raieyana glanced down at the translated text. "Then you must be the 'one who sees'..."

"Hmm?"

"According to this, Patrick has some important role to play, and there are four others to help him: 'one who sees, one who burns; one who grieves, and one who learns.'"

"Wow."

"Makes you wonder about your free will, doesn't it?" Cloud said.

Aeris nodded. "This is quite freaky."

"I suppose it would be. This isn't new to me." Raieyana smiled sadly. "I think those four helpers—or the three others, rather—are probably in our group."

"I would think so." Cloud looked thoughtful. "Fate should know that a stranger is useless the way we're holed up here."

.

"Besides, some of us are strange enough as it is." Yuffie walked in with Azura and Tifa.

"You guys are here..._finally_." Azura rolled her eyes.

"Hey, I haven't been in my room since this morning, though." Aeris stuck out her tongue, figuring it was best to act normal around her.

"Are those translations any help, Ray?" asked Tifa.

"Oh, lots." She smiled. "You did a great job," she said earnestly.

.

Loud voices burst into the room, preceding their owners. "I am _not_ a lightweight!"

"Sure you are. How many drinks did it take last Friday...? _Three_ and you were dead drunk."

Sean walked in, annoyed. "I didn't even buzz... Well, maybe a little."

Ishmael snickered. "_Kati_ had more than you."

Jumping on her brother's back, Kati giggled. "Maybe I outweigh him or something."

The three of them suddenly realized that they had barged into what appeared to be a serious discussion; they quieted down, with sheepish looks on their faces.

Amazingly enough, Red XIII strode in, with Marta in tow. "I hope this doesn't mean there is nothing left for my late-night snack," he said gravely.

"Yeah," she piped up. "Is this the thanks we get for seeing off Barret and Marlene?"

.

"Wow...this is nearly everyone. We should have an impromptu meeting, I guess, and fill Reeve and Vincent in with the details whenever they come back," suggested Yuffie.

Raieyana hesitated, then nodded, and the group gathered around her. "The target is Jenova. Our battle is the ultimate one—"

A tall figure burst in suddenly. Vincent viewed the group's stares with a slight apprehension. "I'm...getting water. I had a bit much to drink."

"Did Reeve go to his room?" Tifa asked softly.

"What? I haven't seen him since he left the bar with you."

* * *

Utter darkness and silence were his companions. Nearly fifteen years...he had never paid any respects at the Undorian monument Raieyana had built. Every step he took was still tainted with jealousy, it seemed.

Reeve wasn't quite sure what had caused him to run off on Cloud's chocobo, then pick his way through charred ruins, to the spot where a dead friend had given him his life.

Years of insecurity tore at him. He had never known if he had his wife—merely because he was the one who had survived. Why did it mean so much to get Cloud's son out of his house?

(Why did I feel so much relief when I saw Strife with my little Rissy? What kind of father just walks away from that, feeling relieved? ...just because it meant that he didn't want Ray.)

So there he was, paying homage to the moment that still grieved the woman he loved most. Turmoil filled him. It rattled inside his head and brimmed out his eyes and ears. He neither felt nor saw nor heard anything else. (I would sell my soul to Hojo to get Reno back. Would he make you happier, Ray?)

Reeve paced the ground where he stood. (I'm close to the place...I can feel it.) All around, he could see a slight glow. The years-old blast of Lifestream still lingered over the ruins of the place which had tried to kill the Planet.

His foot kicked something. Shiny metal glimmered as the object moved a little ways in front of him. Bending down, he picked it up and examined it.

"No," he whispered. "No fucking way in hell." Resting in the palm of his hand was a capsule on a ball chain, standard issue to Shinra combat employees. Nothing particularly special there, except for the fact that Reno had still made a habit of wearing his in the Alcor days.

Then there were the initials engraved on the side, _J.R._. (No, no, that means _nothing_.)

He knew what was inside. A "last hurrah" letter, written for the next of kin, in case of a death in action. Reeve knew that if the letter inside was recent to the time Reno had died...then the letter was for Raieyana. He just wasn't sure how to explain coming across it.

(How do I tell her? "Well, honey, I _finally_ felt grief and decided to pay my respects to Jack. I never could do it in Undor-Hai, because that memorial made me insanely jealous for some stupid reason.")

He knelt down, unconsciously clasping the capsule to his chest. (How do I explain to her, Jack, that it took me over fourteen years to feel sorry? That my remorse came slowly...)

"Can I tell her?" he said aloud. "That I let you do what you did...when all along, I knew the code that would have saved us all...including you?" A bitter tear escaped from Reeve's eye and dropped to the dust. "I thought you'd make it out in time, but I hoped you wouldn't."

"I'm sorry Jack...so goddamn sorry."

* * *

_"I want closure."_

_The chief looked at Asula. "This is a very tall tale that you ask me to believe, oh stranger."_

_"Father." The chief's daughter intervened. "It's not outlandish, though. The woman she speaks of...her arrival preceded our own plagues and troubles. And her name does mean destruction from the skies."_

_"Eritsu. Do you see anything when you look at this...Jenova?"_

_The girl lowered her head. "No." She glanced at Asula, her eyes suddenly alight. "But I see white and purity...marred by sorrow. In _this_ girl. If she is lying to us, then my sight fails us. And let the Planet destroy us as it intends."_

_The chief paused, thinking gravely. "But why is it, that I cannot send a warrior after her in the night?"_

_"She killed all our warriors at once," Asula answered. "If it were just a question of warriors, she would have never made it to your village."_

_"Do you have any idea how to defeat her?" asked Eritsu. "There are some things that my eyes cannot see. I will not be able to help you in this."_

_"Yes...I have an idea." She looked to the chief. "Do I have your permission, my lord?"_

_He nodded soberly. "Yes, yes. I would like to keep to our old ways, moving about...but that life has gotten hard. So our group of Cetra decided to settle down in these plains. But I suppose that made us an easy target."_

_"There is nothing you did wrong," insisted Asula. "A wise friend of mine told me that Jenova is not from our Planet. This is no punishment from the elders beyond...this is no challenge to test those who wish to enter the Promised Land. It is our turn to protect the Planet that gives us life."_

_"Then all I have is at your disposal. Will that be enough?"_

_"I hope so. If not..." Asula's eyes glanced out the window to watch Jenova singing, dancing, and laughing with some young men of the village. "I wish quick deaths upon those we leave behind."_


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27

.

Raieyana held up one hand to stop the commotion. "Look...I'm sure he's fine. It looks like Reeve just took Cloud's chocobo out for a little spin." She stood up from the bird tracks she had been examining.

As she walked back to the house, Tifa turned to the others. "We should probably just drop it for now," she said softly, "and worry about Patrick. If it's what Raieyana wants, it's her family...her decision."

"What about Dad?" asked Ishmael.

"He's all right," said Aeris, "and I think he needs to be alone right now." She met her twin's eye and waited for his nod.

"Let's go inside." Ignoring his sister, he grabbed Kati's hand and walked quickly inside the house.

As the others turned and slowly went back to the house, Cloud looked at Aeris. "You all right?"

"He's never done that before."

"I'm sure he's under stress."

She bit her lip. "He's mad that I decided Patrick was in more danger—doesn't matter that it's the _truth_—and said Dad wanted to be alone. He wanted me to agree with what he felt and I can't do that if I know otherwise."

"Then don't be upset. Just feel sorry that he can't see things as clearly as you can. As long as you know what's most important to focus on, the little stuff will fall into place." He drew her close a placed a light kiss on her forehead.

"I'm worried about us...my family...and what this is going to do to us."

"Your mom and dad have been through a _lot_," Cloud said reassuringly. "Of course it will be difficult, but if they could survive your mother's death and all, everything will be all right."

"I'm not so sure," she said softly. "We've been ignoring a lot of things. If they all come to a head at once, we'll snap into pieces."

"I'll make sure no one tramples the Rissy piece."

She smiled a little and wrapped her arms around him. "At least I have that..." She took his hand. "Let's go inside."

.

Azura was just inside the doorway, hands on her hips. "You guys...I can't do anything without you here."

"What are we now, sweetie, your support group?" asked Aeris.

"Yes." The girl tossed back her black hair. "Well..." She lowered her voice. "I've been thinking about the prophecy. When I was supposed to be looking for Reeve." She gave them a sheepish look and continued. "So, I was thinking...when you two and me...and Pat were all together, wouldn't you say we bonded pretty well?"

"I suppose..." offered Cloud.

"If Rissy is the one who sees, I'll give you guys a guess as to who probably is the one doing the burning."

The two of them shrugged and pointed at Azura.

She smiled. "Precisely. I just don't know if you're grieving or learning, Cloud."

His eyes widened and he cocked his head to the side in thought. "Well, to be quite honest, I feel like it's a little bit of both."

"But you'd fit into one of the categories."

He glanced at Aeris, then nodded. "Most likely."

"I just wonder who our fourth is...I don't like anyone else as much as you guys."

"Zuri!"

"It's true, Riss. And I never really liked you before now."

Aeris laughed and gently pushed the younger girl back towards the kitchen. "Come on, Miss Congeniality, it's time to do what you were waiting for us to come back for."

.

(They're all looking at me.) Azura smiled nervously and addressed the room. "Lately, I've been having a real knack for using materia. The day at the Alcor building, I had used a Sense materia to peek inside from on the sidewalk." She held up a yellow orb and slipped it into her armlet. "I'm going to try and see...if not where Patrick _is_, then the last place he left strong vibes."

Yuffie gazed at her, not only in awe at her magic prowess, but at her maturity and grace. "She really is _your_ daughter, Vince."

"I know," he replied, sipping coffee and gazing in wonder, as wisps of yellow energy surrounded her.

Aeris leaned on Cloud's shoulder, almost bracing herself in case a group vision took her senses over again. (Zuri still has no idea just how strong she really is.)

Cloud had one arm clasped around her waist, and another hand bracing the two of them in the doorway. Hard dirt was not a place to fall on one's knees.

But maybe Azura had harnessed her energy, for the others merely watched as she trembled, her eyes open and staring at sights unknown to them.

All at once, there was a brilliant flash, blinding the group for a moment. Vincent's eyes recovered the quickest. He was just in time to see his youngest daughter collapse. Hurrying over, he knelt at her side.

"I'll get her some water." Marta, always helpful, scooted off.

The others watched as he shook Azura—gently—and tapped her shoulder, hoping to bring her back to consciousness.

Her eyes finally opened and she looked up at her father in alarm.

"Sweetheart, are you okay?"

She shook her head furiously. "I saw—" Her whisper trailed off into the hushed silence. "It couldn't be. He wouldn't..."

Vincent held her for a moment.

Marta offered the glass to Azura, who took it with shaky hands and managed to swallow a sip.

All of this happened at the same time Aeris's eyes widened in horror and she staggered a bit backwards into Cloud.

"What is it?" he asked.

Vincent softly spoke to Azura. "What did you see?"

A tear rolled down Aeris's cheek.

"Flame...ash." Azura drew in a shuddering breath. "Wutai."

Yuffie and Vincent exchanged horrified looks, as the eerie silence was interrupted by the sound of the Highwind II returning from Kalm.

Aeris ran to Azura and pushed Vincent toward the door. "You want to go," she insisted, in a low voice.

"Who else is coming?" He addressed the others, then turned and looked on in disbelief as the older girl comforted his hysterical daughter.

"I'm going," said Ishmael. Kati was clinging to his arm.

"I've seen enough destruction," declared Cloud. "I'll stay here, with anyone who wants to, so those who wish to go can do it. No need to let the welfare of the rest of us weigh on your minds. You need to reach Wutai."

All of the occupants turned to leave. Vincent and Yuffie, hand in hand; close behind were Ishmael, Kati, and Sean; Marta, her hands buried in Red XIII's mane, followed closely by her mother. Raieyana paused at the doorway.

"They'll need your level head," said Cloud softly. She nodded and walked out.

.

A few minutes later, the whir of propellers announced the Airship's sudden departure. Azura broke away, brushing tears from her eyes. "My heart hurts," she whispered, "I need to sit a little while by myself." She stood, shakily, and plodded to her bedroom.

Cloud stood silently, protectively, over Aeris. "My kid brother pulled another Sephiroth," she muttered bitterly.

"If the situation is the same here...then we know Patrick isn't evil, deep down inside."

"I know he was _told_ to do this...so the one person in this Planet who can reach the real Patrick... He was told to do this so Zuri would hate him." Tears ran down her face. "Jenova can't win this time. Otherwise my life...my children...will all be tainted, because of the cells in my blood."

"Something I'm learning," said Cloud slowly, "from your mother mostly—a bit from the first Aeris, long ago—is that you can't throw hope away just because of fear. A full life is worth any pain you've risked. Don't be a coward like me, Riss."

"I can't be..." She looked up at him. "Not if you're here to say things like that to me."

"I'm not the strongest, surest thing for you to lean on."

"Cloud, please," Aeris shook her head, then stood up to meet him face-to-face. "Just shut up and hold me."

He felt silky arms circle around his neck and he obliged, placing his hands on her waist and drawing her near.

"Make me feel like there will be something left for me to hang onto...even if the whole Planet turned to dust."

* * *

_"Let the men of greatest courage come before me," declared the chief._

_Several young men stepped up into his hut, presenting themselves to the chief, Eritsu, and Asula._

_"Eritsu shall choose the three of you most suited to my task. The others shall go back to hunting stag." He nodded to his daughter._

_Asula watched intently as the older girl stood before each man, placing her hand on his forehead and pausing, as if listening intently to words unspoken. When she finished, she tapped three men on the shoulder. They followed her up to her father._

_"The rest of you are dismissed." After the rejected hopefuls left, he gestured for the three to come closer, and they did so. "This is a simple mission. I think that it would be pleasing for you to take Jenova on a trip to the small canyon north of our city. I believe her presence there will bless the spring rains, making our crop bountiful. You must take her there while snow is still heavy on the ground, to make the Planet favor us. I wish to prevent flood and drought."_

_"I thought you wanted us to treat Jenova with caution," one of them said._

_"I want to perform a ceremony at the altar when she is away. I am afraid that outsiders have never been permitted to view it, and I do not intend to break the rules of our Elders. Her grace will also be welcomed by the Planet during this lonely season." He eyed the three men with severity. "Can I trust you, my tribesmen?"_

_They all nodded eagerly._

_"Keep an eye on the weather and inform me of the best day to take her to the canyon without raising suspicion. Otherwise, I will not have the preparations complete for the planting ceremony." He bowed his head. "That is all. Thank you for your service."_

_"We serve you and the Planet, my lord," the three replied, in unison, before exiting the hut._

_"They know routine well," commented Asula._

_"Do you find this unusual?" the chief asked._

_"No. Reassuring, in fact. I hope these men are up to their task. They seem very loyal and obedient."_

_"Are you sure this is the only way?" A touch of sorrow filled the man's face._

_Eritsu nodded. "I cannot see any other way to subdue Jenova than with Asula's plan."_

_"As long as your men can get her there...I can make sure she never returns from that canyon. Her grave will be a frozen tomb of rock and ice. What was cruel enough for Erhiz, shall be mercy compared to what I wish I could inflict on her depravity."_


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

.

_White. It glared and gleamed, hurting Asula's eyes. Shielding her brow, she searched for four figures in the distance. They were as ants from her height. She squinted and focused on one form in particular._

_(Your time is nearly up, Calamity.)_

_Remorse touched her slightly as she reflected on the three men, who were to be sacrificed as they faithfully served their tribe. (Better just those three now, then their entire village later.) She set her jaw; her mind firmly set upon the task in front of her. The time was approaching; the small group neared the narrowest part of the ravine. A weird energy began to flow through the atmosphere._

_Closing her eyes, Asula called on the elements. With a few prayers uttered and a bit of focus pinpointed, the sun was covered with a dark thundercloud. All the while, she called on darker powers still._

_Streams of fire flew from both of her palms, casting a torrent of ice and snow downward, creating an avalanche into the ravine. This sealed it off and buried the occupants._

_Asula dropped to her knees, feeling quite drained. As she slowly caught her breath, she noticed the strange feeling hadn't gone away. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and small shivers ran up and down her spine. Soon, she realized the problem._

_(My job is not yet complete.)_

_"What else do you want me to do?" she demanded of the sky. Her only answer was the gusting wind from the storm she had called. At a loss for her next move, Asula kicked a stone over the edge in frustration._

_An idea came to her as she watched it land with a thud. It was comforting and disturbing at the same time. She closed her eyes and placed her palms upon the earth in front of her._

_(Better four, than my entire race.)_

_Rock fell that day. If only once, this was a time when a person so small had the ability to bring down a mountain. Maybe only one part of the rock face collapsed, but that matters little in the scheme of things._

_Even if there had been enough time to run, Asula had drained her last ounce of strength. That time does not matter. There is only one time that matters._

_Asula brought two thousand years of safety to the Planet that day, but her name was lost in the rock that became her grave._

_

* * *

_

"These are just scientific notebooks, sir."

Patrick let out a sigh of disgust. "You are dismissed." He sat down in the lab of the Shinra mansion and gingerly opened one of the seemingly ancient journals.

"S—sir, I..."

"Permanently dismissed," he continued, not even looking up. "Don't take it personally, since I want you to take all of your men and leave."

.

Inside his mind, Patrick watched the exchange that followed like a movie.

_He heard his voice speak, though he did not control it. "Earlham is a fool. A simple puppet, while I am the only thing that the powers that be ever truly desired. His plans for conquest and armies are delusions, given to his simple mind so he could comprehend what I mean to this Planet."_

_"Sir?"_

_"Take the men and take leave to Earlham. These are my orders. I don't think I shall need your help, don't you agree?" He turned his bright Mako eyes to the trembling man's face._

_"I trust your judgment, sir." The soldier saluted._

_"Just leave the chocobo."_

_The man nodded and left the room._

.

(This isn't me.

"_Of course it is...this is all you ever wanted to be."_)

Patrick held his head in his hands and moaned. (I won't let you control me!

_"I told you before. I _am_ you and I'm completely in control..."_

Then why are you looking for a huge piece of red materia?

_"Because that will benefit me...you...greatly."_

You refuse to tell me why...yet if you and I are the same, then I should know what the materia is for, deep down. And _you_ should know where it is!

_"I never asked you or told you because you have no comprehension of such things. You're only a monster. This is the better Patrick, the one who will have a meaningful role in history!"_

I'd rather be a monster than a puppet...

_"Silly boy, don't you know you're both?"_)

Images flooded his head. Wutai burning, people dying, Azura crying, and Patrick smiling. (No...)

.

The little boy inside Patrick sobbed...and Jenova continued her work. His voice read an excerpt aloud: _"It has been determined through much testing that the red-colored, so-called 'Summon' materia actually opens an inter-dimensional gate, essentially sucking creatures from other worlds into our own. After a certain amount of time, usually determined by the power of both materia and materia user, these creatures are returned home through a subsequent gate back home._

_"No person has ever attempted a leap into one of these portals, mainly because few exist on the Planet who can exert that much control over the power of the materia to create a stable portal for two-way travel. The only other option would be to leap into the return door with the creature, which would not work out for obvious reasons._

_"If any of the powerful 'Huge materia' in our company reactors happen to be of the red variety, this may be regarded as sort of an ultimate in summoning. If the right materia user could be found, this materia could be the key to creating portals between worlds. Summon materia could possibly be a key to the Promised Land."_

Patrick sighed. "Signed, Professor Gast."

(_"And to think, I used to think he was the useless one. This is a wonderful development."_) Patrick's mind had fallen into the background once more, but not without leaving valuable information for the being controlling him. (_"There is only one materia user on the Planet qualified for such a task as the one I have in mind. Will love make her blind...or will her thirst for revenge on Wutai lead her to madness?_

_"Either way...I will have her."_)

A twisted smile crossed his face. "My Zuri."

* * *

Reeve slowly walked into the front door of Tifa's Cosmo Canyon home. (It looks pretty quiet. Everyone must be in bed, thank goodness.) Closing the door behind him, he tiptoed into the living room, only to find himself face-to-face with Cloud.

"You missed quite a bit while you were off on your field trip," said the blond man with a twist of irony in his voice.

"I didn't do anything that you haven't done."

"I know." There was an awkward pause as the long-time adversaries gazed at each other.

"And I know about you and Rissy."

A slight bit of panic crossed Cloud's blue eyes.

"Relax." Reeve shrugged his shoulders a bit. "We're all under pressure. Riss is an adult. I would advise her against this, but as long as you don't hurt her," he said, emphasizing the last few words, "I can't be concerned with it at the moment."

His eyes softened. "Good... Zuri decided to look for Patrick, using that Sense-remote viewing skill of hers." His voice trailed off and he swallowed the lump in his throat. "He destroyed Wutai. Everyone flew off there in a rush. Zuri's resting upstairs, and so is Rissy."

"Why is Rissy—"

"She got another psychic flash, and it was of the ruins of the city."

"Oh god..." Reeve put his face in his hands and leaned on the wall for support. "What in this Planet have I unleashed?"

"We can fix this," said Cloud.

"How?" Reeve insisted. "Well maybe _you_ can, but I sure as hell can't. I destroy everything I build. I'm too weak, I was never cut out for this hero nonsense."

"Even those born to be heroes can stumble along the way." He gestured to the scroll translation sitting on the table in front of him.

Wearily brushing back his brown hair and perhaps even a tear or two, he picked up the paper. Reeve glanced over a few lines and laughed bitterly. "He's the savior of the Planet, not the next Sephiroth, and I've been treating him like devil spawn." He set the paper down. "It's yet one more thing on my list of crimes. And Vincent thinks _he_ has penances..."

.

"Dad." Aeris carefully walked down the stairs to them, her face pale and wan, green eyes blazing. She placed her arms around him before looking up at Cloud. "We're in danger here," she said softly.

"What is it?"

"The huge materia. Jenova needs it for some reason or another, I don't know...but she has a link to Patrick now and he knows where it is."

Reeve shuddered. "The Planet is doomed."

"No." She shook her head softly. "There's still hope. That Wutai thing...was part of the search for the huge materia."

"That means Patrick must be fighting her control." Cloud was deep in thought. "And it's buying us time to stay a step ahead of her."

"If we leave now," said Aeris.

Breaking from his daughter's embrace, Reeve looked at the two of them. "The chocobo has been fed and stabled. He should be up for another spin tonight."

"We can't leave Zuri, Dad..."

"Of course not. I will stay here and meet whatever may come." His voice was resolute. "Azura can get herself out of here if the danger presents itself. You two should take the materia from here and flee."

A tear rolled down Aeris's cheek. "Dad...you can't stay here, you'll be—"

"Are you armed?" asked Cloud coolly.

Reeve nodded.

"Rissy, go get the materia and stick it in my satchel."

The tears flowed more steadily as she turned and ran towards the observatory.

"You don't need to do this. Patrick is my son." Cloud's eyes were full of resolve.

"He may be of your blood, but I am the root of his exile, not only the physical, but also the mental and spiritual. If I can't help him, I alone deserve what he may unleash. Not you, not my Rissy, and certainly not Azura."

Aeris returned to the doorway, bag in hand.

"Take care of her, Strife."

She began to shake her head.

Cloud walked to her side. "It's the only chance we have. Only two of us can fit on the chocobo."

"You need to hurry," Reeve insisted.

.

It seemed a mere moment between the instant Aeris and Cloud rushed out the door to the last time Reeve heard a "Wark" resounding through the late night air. Shadows danced along the walls as the flame in the fireplace flickered its irregular rhythm. Glints of light reflected off the cold metal of the knives that rested in his lap.

He sat on the bottom of the stairs, guarding the passage to Azura's room with the faithfulness that any guilty man gives to his penance. Seconds may have passed, or minutes, or hours, but all those measures seemed irrelevant.

The only thing that mattered was that Reeve was there to meet fate eye-to-eye, with the plans to leave his weapons behind for once. It was time for forgiveness, for Patrick and for himself.

He just didn't know if the child he rejected for fourteen years had any ears left to listen to his apology.

.

_Others may vanish in the depths of the night  
Others may drown their sorrow in tears  
The time is come to stay in sight  
And reconcile these fears_


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter 29

.

Azura tossed and turned in bed, waking with a startle. Clutching the blankets up to her chest, she shivered in the darkness. (It was so cold...) Vivid images from the dream still hung in her mind. (Was I the girl in the snow? Did fire fly from_ my_ hands once?)

(Is that all I've ever been supposed to do?)

The chills soon passed and the desert heat soon slipped back. She threw the blankets off and stood, walking to the window. (Once, a meteor fell from the sky and scarred the Planet. But the true damage was caused by the thing inside.) The starlight twinkling in the sky held no more warmth than the bright snows of Gaea's cliff.

(Life after life, for thousands of years...we've struggled. Struggled against one little creature. The Ancients thought it a plague, and the scientists thought it a deity.) Azura closed her eyes. (Every night for weeks I've gone to sleep only to learn the pain I knew two thousand years ago. I know what it's like to be alone, without a homeland.)

(Wutai may be no more, but I refuse to be alone. I can't let go of you, Pat, not until every speck of life has been driven from me.)

She clenched her fist and walked to the table, holding the huge piece of yellow materia from the observatory. (Jenova was not destroyed because Asula gave up. I once was weak, but now I am strong.) "I am..." A look of confusion crossed her face and she turned to the doorway. "...only going to tell you this once. Put him down."

Patrick entered her room soundlessly, dragging an unconscious Reeve behind him. He held a pistol to his sleeping stepfather's temple. "It's not my fault he didn't have the common sense to put on a ribbon."

* * *

(The sun's been down for hours. Yet it's hot as hell here...but so dark.) Kati sat on the beach, about a mile or so from the limits of Wutai. (So, so dark.)

Few people had escaped the blaze. It seemed that Patrick's forces had used materia to start the fire in several places at once. The paper thin, flimsy buildings easily became prey to the flames, and those that did manage to get out of their homes were completely surrounded by the inferno of the rest of the town.

The Valentines' home and the five-tiered Pagoda were nearly the only structures that survived, and both bore the black, charred scars of their battles with the inferno. Yuffie had put on her leader façade to offer any consolation she possibly could to the survivors. Vincent and Sean were inside their house, seeing if any of their possessions could be salvaged.

The rest of the group, who didn't even live in Wutai, seemed to be the most affected at the moment. They huddled at the outskirts, dumbfounded by the chaos in front of them. It's almost as if they knew their sole purpose there was to comfort Yuffie and Vincent's family once the numbness of shock wore off and reality hit them.

Kati gazed out at the ocean. It always had a way of soothing her, no matter what troubles were on her mind. There was always something eerie about being on the shore at night, though. The horizon disappears, when pitch black night meets the midnight depths of the ocean. No matter what is going on in the rest of the world, the only thing there to greet someone is the darkness.

(I feel like I'm on the edge of the world.)

"Kati." A baritone voice stirred her from her reflections.

She turned and looked into deep brown eyes, so dark that the Mako glow was barely noticeable. She saw love and concern, but none of that seemed important at the moment. (Everyone here has lost so much, yet I've got all the important things right here. My family is safe. I don't deserve to still have things to make me happy!)

"I'm here for you, sweetie," Ishmael said, sounding a bit perplexed.

Looking back to the ocean, she sighed. "It's unfair that you are still here for me. Patrick's connection to us made him destroy Wutai, and we are all safe and sound. I'm sad the people in my home suffered, but no one I cared about is gone. Not _one_!"

He cautiously wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "That's not really something you should complain about, at least within earshot of anyone else."

"I just wish I felt bad. But the only thing I feel is an urge to get away from this place."

"I understand that. Everything has been destroyed...there _isn't_ anything to hold you here anymore."

"That's not the way I meant it." Kati looked at him thoughtfully. "I want to leave because I don't want to see their pain. I don't _have_ any pain about this, none at all. Yeah, I had some stuff here and too bad it's gone...but..." Her voice trailed off and she shrugged her shoulders.

Ishmael held her closer. "We all have our ways of dealing with this stuff."

"You know what's terrible?" A tiny laugh escaped her lips. "The first thing that came into my head, when we stepped off the Highwind... That this settles the argument about where we're going to live after we get married."

They stood there for a moment. The only sound carried in the air was that of the waves breaking along the shore.

"If we have kids...I won't be taking them to that damn Pagoda to prove their 'worthiness,' and they won't have to visit Grandpa Godo's grave." A little shudder passed through her body.

"Kat—"

She continued quickly, ignoring him. "I won't have to tell them to watch out for inflated prices at the Materia Shop...or to make sure the dirty old man behind the counter at the weapons' place doesn't leer at them too much." A small sniffle.

Biting his lip, Ishmael just tightened his hold on her.

"They won't try to bring home a new pet from the little shack full of stray cats." The tears were flowing freely down her face now. "Ish?" She turned to face him, her face now tear-stained.

He softly kissed her forehead. "What, hon?"

She drew in a shuddering breath. "We're ne—never gonna see Cid d-drunk off of Turtle Daiquiris again!"

.

Ishmael gazed silently at the ocean as Kati collapsed into his shoulder, sobbing.

"I hate him," she swore. "I didn't want to...I tried not to, but I can't help it. Ish, I don't want to hate him, for your sake..."

"Patrick hurt you," he said flatly.

The only response was more sniffling.

"Don't worry about me..." He stroked her hair softly. "I don't need a brother that could do something like this," he declared, raising his voice.

.

Raieyana and Tifa froze where they were standing, about to join the couple on the beach. Closing her eyes, Raieyana looked as if a blow had just struck her down.

"I'm sure he didn't mean it. We all know Patrick couldn't have been himself."

"I deserved to hear that."

"What does that mean?" asked Tifa.

"I often wondered, silently to myself, when I was pregnant with Patrick and hiding in that cave... How Lucrecia lived with herself, knowing that she'd given birth to a cold-blooded killer." "Ray..."

"Sephiroth was cold-blooded and calculating, a killer, before he was ever given a head job. He was raised to be that way. So I figured, no matter what the foreboding I felt within myself, the only thing I could do for Patrick was to raise him with love."

"He knows love..." Tifa placed her hand on her shoulder.

"I know that." Raieyana nodded. "I'm just saying now, that I get it. What Lucrecia must have felt within herself every day, since Vincent told her of Sephiroth's life after his birth. She had to hope that without the interference of Hojo and Jenova, and deep down inside, he was a good person. I have one up on her. I _know_ that Patrick is a good person. I know he knows love and feels love. Care, concern, remorse. If nothing else, Patrick is human."

"Then we can't lose hope. We have to have faith in those prophecies."

She sighed and gazed once more upon her son and his fiancee. "It's not the strength of my own faith that I'm unsure of."

* * *

"I must say, that's a very different look you have there."

Azura shrugged a little. "I could say the same about you."

Patrick looked down at his dark shirt and black leather pants. "We do match though, Zuri."

"Maybe a little," she admitted, glancing at her own black tank top and leather pants. "But I don't have a hostage."

"Reeve?" He laughed heartily, filling the empty silence. "No, he's not a hostage. I didn't expect you to care about him one way or the other."

"I just wonder why you care enough to hold onto him."

"Hmm?"

Azura crossed her arms in front of her. "Look, if you wanted vengeance, he'd be dead by now. So it's obviously something else."

He cocked his head to one side, his eyes becoming cloudy. "Information," he mumbled.

"What do you want to know?"

Shaking his head, Patrick's voice gained strength. "I need the huge materia."

"You know it's in the observatory here. It's been here since way before you were born."

"It's _gone_." His voice turned to a low growl.

(I only took one of them.) Azura winced at the tone in his voice. "I've been asleep for awhile," she lied. "I don't know anything."

"Toying with me, _sweetheart_?" Patrick slapped Reeve across the face—hard.

.

Blinking awake, Reeve found himself in a place different than the one he'd been put to sleep in. "Wha—?"

Pulling a knife from a sheath strapped to his arm, Patrick slid the flat of it along his stepfather's neck. "Dear, dear Zuri...I know how you can't bear to see pain. It would be a shame if your lies killed the man who pretended to be my father, wouldn't it?"

Reeve gulped and glanced at the gray-eyed girl.

Azura shook her head. "Pat...I know you're in there somewhere! Look, I believe in you and I know you don't want to do these things...I love you!"

"You loved a lie. His love for _you_ was a lie just like he was." Patrick's eyes narrowed. "I'm only repeating myself once. Where is the huge materia?"

"She doesn't know." Reeve's eyes flashed defiantly.

He nearly dropped the knife. "You do," he said, half-laughing in shock. "What, you actually did something pro-active for once, instead of sitting back and watching everyone else save the day?"

"I wouldn't say that...I was foolish enough to put my life on the line for you..."

Patrick kicked him sharply in the stomach.

Reeve doubled over in pain, groaning. "Oh come on, the last time you used this trick it didn't work, remember?"

"Are you going to tell me where the materia went?"

The only response was laughter. "Don't you get it? I'm the one that stayed behind because I'm the only one that _I_ could trust not to talk!"

Taking care to miss any vital organs or blood vessels, Patrick stabbed Reeve in the shoulder with the knife. Blood trickled from the wound, slowly staining the white dress shirt that he always seemed to wear.

Azura turned away in despair. (I can't sit back and let this happen, not when I...) Her eyes fell upon the huge yellow materia. (Yellow means command...command means...)

"Patrick...I know some piece of you is still inside there," Reeve said calmly. "I want to tell you that I was wrong and I'm sorry."

"It's...lies..." he mumbled. It seemed like he was trying to convince himself. (_"He's trying to trick you. He thinks you're so simple-minded that you'd believe a stupid dinky little apology."_

No...what if he means it?

_"He only said those things because you finally have power over him. You finally have him where you want him!"_)

. "You should leave him alone," said Azura softly.

"Stay out of this—"

"Pat, don't think about me. Forget about me for a second. What would your mother think?" She kept her hands wrapped around the yellow crystal, her eyes closed, channeling the manipulating energy towards Patrick.

This question was a mental stumbling block. "I..." He closed his eyes. "Mother," he whispered. The knife fell from his hand.

Taking a sigh of relief, she removed her hands from the materia and concentrated on a Cure spell for Reeve. Green waves of energy floated about his body, slowly sealing the wound in his shoulder.

"So this is what you were hiding, my Zuri," Patrick said.

She whirled around to see him holding the huge yellow materia. (Oh no! He recovered faster than I thought he would.)

"Stupid," he said, as he walked to the open window. "You won't do that again." He threw the crystal out the window.

Azura winced, knowing that the precious thing had shattered into countless pieces on the canyon floor.

"Even more stupid, considering that's not even the piece I wanted." He paused, seemingly conflicted. "You were right though...Reeve is not worth my revenge." He threw what was intended to be a withering glance at his stepfather.

Reeve looked into Patrick's eyes and saw the intense battle going on inside him. The expression on the boy's face changed between remorse and unfaltering, before he turned to Azura.

"There is still something here that I need." Before she could even react, she in Patrick's arms, in what seemed to be an embrace. He tore off her armlet and ribbon, then made sure she wasn't carrying a weapon.

(He still thinks I need materia to use magic.) Her eyes lit up a bit.

Holding a pistol to Reeve with one hand, he managed to tie her hands back with the other. "She's coming with me." It was a direct order.

Reeve attempted to get up. "No..." He trailed off in confusion. Patrick had made a threatening gesture with the pistol, but... (Zuri shook her head at me. What is she thinking?)

"You can't get hurt because of me," she said with a little too much of a self-sacrificing tone.

Grabbing her arm with a wrenching grip, Patrick forced her down the stairs and outside into the night.

.

He hoisted her onto his golden chocobo before mounting behind her. "We can still be in things together," he whispered. "Just the two of us. Nothing else matters." Patrick brought a hand to her face, caressing her cheek.

She closed her eyes, a tear slipping down her face.

Firmly wrapping one arm around her waist, he leaned in close and whispered something so softly to her...before sending them off at a gallop into the last bit of the night.

Azura contemplated his words in confusion, wondering if some part of him had finally begun to break free.

_"Forgive me, Zuri. My heart knew not what my hands would do."_


	30. Part 8: Doubts of Memory - Chapter 30

Part 8— Doubts of Memory

.

Chapter 30

.

"I thought we were running."

Cloud turned to his green-eyed companion. "Where can we run?"

Aeris was silent for a moment, contemplating the question.

He stared down the dusky bluffs. Down, down...the bottom of the gorge beneath him was Cosmo Canyon. Behind him lay the gnarled mass that was the Forest of the Ancients. Beside him sat the sister of the person they flew from. "I cannot think of a safe place for us to go, except to watch for him, then fly in the opposite direction—_fly_." He emphasized the word.

"You really think that he could overtake the two of us?"

"Do you think either one of us could bear to lay a hand on him?"

Clutching the satchel close to her body, Aeris shook her head a bit. "I would do whatever it took to save him from himself."

"He has to want to be saved, Rissy." Cloud sighed and ran his hand through the sand, letting it sift through his fingers. "He has to have something to fight about, something to fight for, and something to fight with."

"I have faith in him."

"I want to," he said softly, "I want to. But it took a tragedy staring me in the face to _begin_ to snap me out of it. I hope it won't come to that point for Patrick."

She bit her lip and gazed down into the canyon. "I...I see something!"

Cloud snapped to attention and peered down past where Aeris was pointing. "That's a Gold Chocobo and..." He squinted, trying to make out the indefinite shadows in the distance.

"Two people," she murmured. "He's got Zuri...it's too small to be my dad." There was a hint of strain in her light intonations, and Cloud squeezed her arm. "My gut tells me we have to hop on our bird now and go whichever way they're not..."

He read the tone of her voice. "You're conflicted, though."

"My heart tells me we have to go protect Zuri. She has her magic skills, but they're not totally developed, and Patrick could have overpowered her."

"What if he's luring us in? This could all be just a trap."

"I couldn't live with myself if I didn't do all in my power to protect her and try to save him also. This may be the best opportunity we ever have," Aeris said thoughtfully. "After all, we only ran because we wanted to make sure no one got hurt."

"And we shouldn't keep running just to save ourselves, is that what you're saying?"

"Absolutely." A weak smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

Cloud half-smiled in return before softly planting a kiss on her cheek. Making a step from his hands, he stood in front of his chocobo. "When it comes to saving the world, ladies first."

Aeris climbed up onto the bird, holding it steady as he hoisted himself up behind her. Once his arms were tightly around her waist, she guided their mount and quickly rode after the golden streak that was disappearing over the eastern horizon.

* * *

Raieyana paced the deck of the Highwind II, wondering if she could possibly have done the right thing. She couldn't have gotten the PHS call from Reeve more than half an hour ago, and she was rushing back to Cosmo Canyon.

(I should have said _something_ to Vincent or Yuffie.) Truth was, she simply didn't have the strength in her to be the bearer of still grimmer news to people who had already had so much loss in one night.

The ship flew steadily to the southeast, the horizon line softly lightening. The blacks gave way to grays giving way to a purple-pink shade. Sunrise wasn't far off. (It's been quite some time since I've stayed up this long without sleep.)

Kati and Ishmael huddled together near the railing. Raieyana watched them, a pained expression on her face. (Should I have even told them?) She had been talking to them when the call came, and the pain in her eyes was something that would not be hidden.

She turned and faced the rock formations that steadily approached nearer, sighing as she thought about the look on her son's face as he boarded the Highwind. It was a look she knew well. Vengeance, a loss of compassion, burning... She'd seen those eyes before and known the vows that were silently recited in Ishmael's mind, for she'd lived to see them executed.

(He really does look like Reeve.) Raieyana's thought came quietly as one tear managed to slip past her reserve, tracing a line down the curve of her face. After a small lurch, she recognized the dusky cliffs surrounding them and made her way to the ladder.

She threw it over the railing and descended into Cosmo Canyon. It was time to greet emptiness once more.

.

He'd seen the look of hollow sadness once before, and that time it was his fault. Reeve watched the love of his life climbing down before him, wondering if she could forgive him for this time, too. (Ah, but she doesn't even know I am to blame for Reno. Would she even forgive that?)

"How are you?"

(She asked the same thing over the PHS after she heard the news, how can she...care about me when her son, her daughter, are all in danger?) He shook his head. "I am no one to be concerned about."

"Of course you are." Raieyana wrapped her arms around his waist the very same way she'd always done, for years. "Your children are out there in danger."

He turned his head away.

"Reeve." Her voice was firm. "You raised Patrick from birth. You've had just as much influence on him as on Riss and Ishmael, if not more."

"It makes what I have done the more wrong."

Kati and Ishmael quietly disappeared inside Tifa's home, avoiding the emotional discussion in front of them.

"No one's perfect, Reeve."

"I just regret that I have fallen so far from it. Mistake after mistake has fallen through my hands..."

Raieyana buried her head in his chest. "Don't go guilt-trip on me now. You've done better than many others could have in a similar situation."

"That's bullshit, Ray."

She looked up at him in a shocked silence.

"I turned him out in Undor-Hai after you got sick, though he saved your life. I have done things that I never could bear to tell you, lest you think me worthless."

"If my approval was so fickle, it would be meaningless anyway."

"I watched so many people die in Midgar, I betrayed Cloud first before he ever—"

"And my father was a Turk. He killed in cold blood and delivered good people over, but I still always loved him. Because he knew in the end, what he had done and felt remorse. That's all that matters." She warmly took his hand. "You wouldn't say these things to me if you didn't feel remorse. It's all that can matter to me. I can't lose you now, too...not when I feel I've lost all my children."

Reeve broke away, seemingly oblivious to her statements. "I went to Midgar tonight." (So afraid to lose her, I once did horrible things, but she has to know, or this will all mean nothing.) "In all these years, I never paid respects to Jack once."

"You were always welcome to join me," she said softly.

"I didn't do it before because there was always some part of me that wasn't sad. He did what he did voluntarily...and I know he had cheated death many times before. He told me on the flight over there, on that day...that he wished he'd been a hero, just once. Told the guy he already was one, but it wasn't enough for him I guess."

"Honey, nothing else could have been done that day. I'm just thankful that everyone was spared, considering they were there to save my son, unselfishly."

.

Raieyana bit her lip, hoping she could ease his conscience. The little things had always seemed to burn Reeve to the core. (Has he ever had peace?)

"Well..." He choked back the urge to just meekly say that he knew that and accept a loving embrace. "I can't hold it back any longer."

A weird look came into her eye. "Hold _what_ back?"

"I knew the override code for the plate drop, too."

She smiled wanly. "But Reno volunteered so quickly, I'm sure you would've if he hadn–"

"That's not what I meant," he said somberly. "Mine was a simple cancel." The last few words were barely above a whisper.

"Oh." Raieyana looked like she'd just been stabbed. "Oh...my...god..." She slowly slipped to her knees, half in shock.

"I know this doesn't make it any better, but I didn't mean for him to die."

"How could you have no remorse?" A stray tear dropped from her cheek to the sand.

"I locked it away a bit, but part of me died that day. Many times since, I have wished that I'd just sacrificed the rest of myself instead of my integrity and my friend." His eyes glanced at the ground. "I found this, tonight. There's no doubt in my mind that you were the one meant to have it."

Something cool and metallic was slipped in to her palm right before he walked out onto the sand dunes. Raieyana glanced down and saw the gold plating glinting in the early morning light. "Combat tag," she whispered. Inside her, Reno died a second time.


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter 31

.

Azura was shaking in spite of herself. No matter how hard she tried to become convinced that her situation was entirely under control, it wasn't working. Maybe that feeling was caused by the huge storm blowing up behind them...or the huge waves splashing up around the back of their Gold Chocobo. It was a possibility.

"What are you spooked about, it's just a little squall," said Patrick tersely. His arm was still wrapped tightly around her waist.

Under any other circumstances, she would have been less than grateful. She shivered slightly. Suddenly, a huge crest of water broke on top of the pair; Azura was knocked free from the vise-like grip and cast off the chocobo. As this registered, she only had time for a short gasp before her entire mouth and nose were filled with salt water. The liquid flowed around her, but her landing was hard.

Bright mako eyes gazed up at her from atop the bird. "The shoreline becomes quite...indistinct when the waves are so large, doesn't it, Zuri?"

She pulled herself to her knees, brushing wet sand from her face. "You dropped me," she said incredulously.

"Just making sure you understand where the control lies in this little relationship of ours." He smirked.

"You are very sure of yourself...for a person who just ruined a piece of priceless materia with a juvenile temper tantrum only a little bit ago."

Patrick shook his head. "I cannot be juvenile."

She shrugged. "Then I know you're not really Pat. He's just a kid and he would admit it...to me at least."

(_"I could easily fool a child like you...but...making you believe isn't worth my time."_)

Azura gasped, for Jenova's thought had entered her head. (_"Child. Didn't you know that this would happen to you sooner or later...it will happen to all of your little group! How can you hope to defeat me when part of me is inside you all?"_)

Patrick turned to her. "If you destroy me, you will destroy yourself."

* * *

"We have to turn back!" Cloud shouted over the roar of the waves.

"And go where?" Aeris retorted as water broke and spun in the air around them. "We're at least halfway."

"We haven't hit the heart of the storm yet, though."

"At the heart of the storm lies Patrick." She bent down, attempting to soothe the startled chocobo.

Cloud yanked her back down into the saddle. "RISS! If we're riding to certain death, at least keep your butt down where I can keep a firm grip on it."

She turned back and grinned, even as another wave broke over them. "Why would you want a grip on my butt?"

He grabbed the reins and urged the bird to stop. It happily complied. "Even without the storm, this might be certain death."

"Cloud...for us, breathing brings us a step closer to certain death." She took the reins back. "If we're gonna die, we should at least be doing the right thing when it happens. Besides, I can see the shore from here."

The chocobo's terrified warks were barely heard above the roar of the water. Feet pounding through the troughs and peaks of waves, it soon reached the shore. He dismounted, automatically turning and helping Aeris down.

.

"I'm glad you could join the party," Patrick grinned. "It's just never the same without you guys."

Azura sat propped against a large rock, one hand on her temple, the other wrapped around herself for warmth.

Aeris's eyes widened. "If you laid one hand on her, I swear—"

"Calm yourself, sweet sister. Zuri is fine, isn't she?"

The small girl moaned and held her head. "It's not supposed to be like this, Pat."

(_"Hush."_)

The voice seemed to reverberate through the land.

"It's not really there," Patrick announced. "But we all share a bond you see, a debt to the greatest being on the Planet. Without her, our lives as we know it? Zip. Nada."

"There are four of us," Cloud began carefully. "If we just keep together, we can easily break down the power of her attraction."

"Do we really want that, though?" Patrick smirked. "I mean, if you break your bond, you have to remember the pain you caused my mother. Didn't she scream when you held her down on the bed, Cloud?"

"Patrick!" Aeris's hands formed into fists.

"Oh and you...my perfect big sis. So perfect that her father couldn't even stand to see her until she was about seven years old."

"He didn't know," she said defensively.

"He didn't _care_." He walked to Azura. "See what a beautiful happy family we are? Whose image are we made in?" He laughed derisively. "Alone, we are flawed, wretched mortals. Combined with _her_, we can become as gods."

"There was one who said that, long ago. His death was long, and he probably still has torment in his life. Is that what you want?" asked Cloud.

(_"What Patrick wants is what I want. Combined, we are the most powerful being that has ever existed on this Planet."_)

Aeris walked silently over to Patrick. "With all the Planet has shown to me, it neglected...one..." She shook her head.

"Riss—"

She held up a hand, silencing Cloud. "It neglected one important thing. The most important fact of all."

Patrick grinned knowingly. "We are..."

Azura rose and walked up to the two of them. "...the children..."

A realization hit Cloud. He knew this scene. (But why am I just a spectator?) "No, stop!" he yelled. "Aeris..." His steps toward the group seemed as if they were slow motion.

"We are the children of Jenova." Aeris lifted the satchel off her shoulder, handing it to Patrick.

(_"You are left to simply watch because that's all you were ever good for, failure."_) Jenova's words murmured in Cloud's mind.

Aeris turned her head to see him kneeling in pain. "Wait...Cloud?"

.

Patrick scowled and nodded to Azura. Suddenly the two of them were surrounded by a barrier of energy, which blasted Aeris away from them and onto her knees. She stumbled into Cloud.

"Oh no," she whispered.

"So..." There was a sickening lurch in his stomach. "She couldn't hold all of us at once. Looks like you're a spectator, too."

"No!" She jumped to her feet, hurling herself into the barrier.

Patrick laughed as his sister bounced off the blue wall of magic. "Zuri, darling."

The girl was back on her knees, holding her head. "No...get that away..."

"What?" His eyes were opened wide, in an expression of faux innocence. "Oh, you mean the huge materia?" Opening the top flap of the satchel, he scooped up the large red mako crystal. "I'm afraid it's stuck inside here with us."

(no...no...no...no... get it out...open the barrier...

_"Make me. Asula, it's been a long time. I've been biding my time waiting for revenge. I'm going to need all of my strength to break this will..."_)

Patrick handed the materia to Azura. "You can put your energy into this. All your will for fighting, into this crystal. It will set you free."

"No. It won't." She felt her hands wrap around the cold materia anyway. It began to glow as soon as it made contact with her skin.

Aeris got up and banged on the divider between them. "Zuri...you can fight this."

She tried to drop the materia, but she found she couldn't. (_"That loss of control you're feeling? I may not be able to completely control you, girl, but I can control the parts of you that count."_

Control this!) Azura slammed her head directly into the barrier. Her hands lost grip on the materia, which slowly slipped down and landed gently on the ground.

"Zuri?" Patrick whispered, with a hint of his old self in the tone of his voice.

"See?" A drop of blood slid out of Azura's nose. "We _can_ fight it, Pat. Tell me you want to fight it."

"I..." His eyes flashed. He shook his head. "I want to..." His voice dropped to a whisper. "...it's too damn hard." His head suddenly jerked to the right, as if listening to a voice that only he could hear.

"Pat?"

"She says...that she'll let us go, Zuri. We just have to use this materia..._once_."

"Jenova lies!" Cloud shouted.

"Be strong," Aeris said.

"Once, and we'll be free?" Azura asked weakly.

He nodded.

She jumped into his arms. "Okay."

.

Aeris buried her face in Cloud's shoulder. He watched the girl slowly pick up the materia. A bright blood red glow hung in the air around them, steadily glowing brighter. (I pray we have the strength to fight against whatever horror they are unleashing.)


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter 32

.

_Raieyana,_

_This is just stupid._

_In a couple of days, I'll be done with this whole mess and tearing up this letter and getting on with my life. In more ways than one. The last thing I should be doing here is sitting and writing a letter to someone I love...when the best thing for us both would be if I left her with the better man._

_We both know I'm too fucking selfish for that, though, don't we Ray? If I go down, I'll do it with your name on my lips. I'll have your taste on my tongue and my ears will be ringing with the sound of your laugh._

_I doubt you're laughing at the moment though. I'm on a chopper right now, being hauled off to Edinborough by Shelding's lackeys. Luckily, these boys are old school. They gave me pen and paper and unshackled my right hand so I could do the Shinra tradition proud._

_I don't know what to say though. I never put a letter in my capsule before._

_I hope the labor isn't being too hard for you though...I was on my way out the door when Elena came in with...with the news about Junon being in trouble. When the little bastard comes out, tell him he should've been a couple hours earlier and then I could already be teaching him my dirty jokes._

_I'd make a suck-ass dad, I guess._

_Reeve's passed out...I think the guys that nabbed him were instructed to be a little extra rough. That's bullshit, ain't it, we're partners, and I thought I was twice as annoying. Funny how life works._

_I never thought I'd be sitting here writing a letter that was never going to be read, to someone that would mean as much as you._

_I wonder if they'll interrogate us. I wonder even more if these guys know half the techniques we Turks used. On one hand, a normal person'd be screwed by that sorta treatment. But I did it to people myself...I think I can get through it. Besides...it's not time yet for this annoying little street urchin to curl up and die. I want one more time...with you._

_Your life wouldn't be complete without me tearing it up, right, Ray?_

_Okay, that one made me grin a bit. I can just see you telling me that it's not true and it's all your fault. Somehow though, I can't completely put this thing with us away._

_You save me when you smile at me._

_If for some...stupid reason or another...you end up reading this, remember. Whatever you do in the future, don't lose that smile. I couldn't lose that._

_Dunno what I'm supposed to write next though. Love, truly, sincerely? All of the above? God, I never liked writing._

_Jesus, how'd I manage to get to the bottom of the page? Surprised, I bet. Anyway...love ya, babe. I'll be thinking of your kisses (and other things...heh)._

—_Jack Reno_

_

* * *

_

_It was tinted red, the air in there. The smoke hanging around in the air probably didn't help any. All I know is that it was a bar. Not just any bar, no, this was especially for Shinra students and employees. The bouncer outside only let in hotshots. Soldiers and students who seemed to be Turk and executive material. It's funny though, I never saw anyone who managed to make it higher up in the ranks ever frequent this place._

_It's a lure to burn out the brightest prospects, probably. But anyone who could burn bright in a place like Midgar, even before it was finished, had a few screws loose. In more ways than one._

_The dank evening air had surrounded me as I walked from my little studio dive into this smoke-filled hole in the wall. Of course, the first thing I do is light up a cigarette of my own. Cancer sticks, I know, but it's not like the life I lead isn't slowly killing me, anyway._

_You know, it's funny, but I can't seem to remember when and where I picked up this smoking habit. I'm pretty sure it was Lavana's doing...I remember not smoking, at some point in my forgotten past, but now it just feels like I was born with one in my hand._

_I watch the blue smoke waft up from my fingertips, swirling a bit on its ascent to the beams of the ceiling. This building is bare wood, but that's due to lazy finishing, not any degree of newness. Random "Guy + Girl" within hearts have been carved several times in most of these booths. The dates range from last Thursday to nearly ten years ago. This bar must've gone up with the plate._

_Apparently, it takes booze to survive being employed by the Shinra. Would explain quite a bit of the behavior I've seen in my visits to the Headquarters._

_The music is hard, pounding. Techno. One wouldn't expect such an uplifting sort of beat in a place like this, but I suppose anything sleepier than this and the customers would be ODing left and right. I glance nervously at the door._

_It was almost time for my escape._

_Of course, escape didn't arrive for about twenty more minutes. Jack was always late, disheveled. It was amazing that he could keep track of anything. Apparently though, he had "command potential" if he'd just learn to clean himself up a little bit more._

_He slides onto the bench across from me, hair looking more like a chocobo's nest than anything that could possibly be considered of human origin. "You sure you wanna do this? Geez, man, you're clean cut boy. And you know the penalties if someone like you gets caught with what I've got."_

_"Do I joke about things like this, Reno?" I glance into my beer mug, swirling it gently, watching the head as it twists and contorts into various shapes, blending and separating from the amber liquid._

_"Got a lot going for you though, man. I'm a slum kid, Reeve. You've always been middle class. Pot, booze...Shinra'll turn the other cheek. But...this shit is not misdemeanor brush off. And if you get tossed on your ass here, forget finding another job anywhere on this continent, let alone Midgar."_

_"I want to see it."_

_He hunches over the table, raising the arm nearest the edge, shielding the object he's about to display from the rest of the bar. A small vial filled with a glowing liquid. I can't tell if it's green or blue exactly, only that it contained a great deal of luminescence._

_"This...is pure." Reno's eyes lit up a bit. "I got an insider friend at the science lab now. This is the exact shit that they do all the Soldier treatments with now. I did some last night...oh man, it was a rush." He hastily stuffed it back inside his inner jacket pocket. "But I'd be a goner this morning, shooting up pure Mako, except for the fact that I've got the glowy eyes already." He pointed up at his bright aquamarine orbs, as if I hadn't known the fact from the first time I saw him._

_"I have dark eyes," I protest. "My mother was half Wutaian."_

_He examines my face, almost looking for any signs of weakness, stepping back. He really doesn't seem to be eager to make this deal. Not to me, anyway. Reaching back into his pocket, he slides a small paper bag across the table._

_Picking it up, I feel the weight, the shape, and I know it's a vial like the one he showed me. "How much—"_

_He interrupts me before I can even finish the word. "I'll cover it."_

_Needless to say, I'm very puzzled by this. Reno was only in the dealing for the money, he'd told me this a thousand times. "You jerking me around?"_

_"No, man." He blinks a few times. "Not at all. Look, shit, I can't even begin to pretend that I know why you feel like you need an escape. But you look like you need this so bad you'd die if it didn't happen. And you're my boy, y'know? So I'm gonna take care of you."_

_I open my mouth to give him thanks, but the words continue before I get the chance._

_"Once." Reno looks at me with the most serious, no-bullshit expression I have ever seen. "You're not gonna be an addict. And I'll kick your ass from here to Kalm if you even think about going elsewhere to get a fix, got it?"_

_I nod slowly before the gravity of his words kicks in. "Is it that addictive?"_

_"No." He sets his mouth. "It's an easy high, rush starts as soon as you get the shit in your veins, and a little part of you will never ever come down. That's how people get Mako poisoning. Too much...and they never come the fuck down."_

_The chattering of the other patrons of the bar comes to my ears as the two of us sit there silently._

_"You got potential, Jordan, you've just got something deep down inside screwing around with ya. I understand that...but I ain't gonna help you destroy yourself. Just the pain." Reno stands up and prepares to leave. "Wish you'd stay out of here too. Electrical engineers with a chance to make it to the Shinra board of directors don't drink this booze."_

_I glance up at him. "You come in here."_

_"Climbing up slowly. It's better than a brothel."_

_He strides out of the place, as sure of himself as the moment he walked in. A few women tried to catch his eye on the way in and out, but he'd been too full of a purpose. Reno could really be some kinda guy when he felt like it._

.

_Maybe things in my life would have been different if this one encounter hadn't happened._

_I probably should have thrown the vial away then, but I was just some stupid, scared kid looking for an escape from the harsh reality that I lived in. Besides, there are things I didn't know then. Things I still don't know for sure now._

_But I'm fairly certain that Reno's contact in the Science department had been tricked into dispensing tainted Mako to various drug circuits around Midgar. After all, that's a minimalist act compared to some of the other things Hojo did, right?_

_I remember the things Ray said in her book...about...the behavior of those who'd received injections of Hojo's special hybrid Jenova cells..._

_They fit me as well._

_My eyes don't glow, and for awhile that comforted me. Recently though, I realized something. Ishmael's eyes don't glow either. Seems my confidence about not being caught was warranted._

_However, passing the instance off as a one-time getaway was a mistake that I've only now realized. I just hope that it's not too late._


	33. Chapter 33

Chapter 33

.

Azura's concentration on the materia in her hands eventually killed the potency of the blue barrier. Even as a reddish-purple vortex swirled in the heavens above, Aeris shoved her way past the blue energy.

"You gotta stop," she gasped.

The smaller girl glanced up, a reddish tinge highlighting her normally gray eyes. "There's no stopping it now," she murmured, fear just barely managing to creep into her words.

Aeris grabbed her arm.

One hard shove and the older girl was thrown to her knees. Azura glared. "Just because I can't stop it, doesn't mean that I'm finished with what I'm doing!"

"Rissy..." Cloud set his mouth and ran headstrong into the group, only to find a barrier in Patrick's left arm. (Never imagined that he could be so strong.) Struggling against the figure to his right, he suddenly heard a voice invading his thoughts.

(_"You didn't believe it, did you?"_)

He shook his head and continued to reach out towards the crystal. The vortex held steady, swirling and moving, giving the casual observer the impression that space was folding in on itself. The casual observer would probably be right.

(_"So how does it feel, letting the gates of hell open, with your son at your right hand?"_)

A look of recognition materialized in Cloud's eyes. (How...how did that voice from so long ago manage to get so many things right?)

.

Patrick turned, with a bemused expression on his face that contradicted the haunted look in his eyes. "Isn't this everything you ever imagined, father? Feel the glory. Your son caused all of this. This is how one person can mangle every hope of one Planet. Every twist and contortion in the intentions of fate is a perfect match. It matches every pant of breath, each scream of pain, all your moans of pleasure, every single drop of blood fallen from delicate flesh torn... Any and every curse whispered containing your name...mutated the light into a grisly tool, bent and molded to the every whim...of your most hated enemy."

"I did not make this!" He screamed in anguish, reaching down, straining against his son, with all of his strength. Seeking to wrench Patrick's arm away, he shoved his hand down—hard...

...into nothing.

Cloud nearly fell to his knees but managed to preserve his balanced stance. Twisting a bit, he heaved his shoulder into Patrick with all his might.

The boy tumbled from this unexpected blow, cursing a bit on his way down.

Immediately, he ran to Azura, wrapping his strong arms around her waist.

As she threw her self to and fro, grunting with exertion, in an attempt to free herself, Aeris rushed up. Raising one of her crystal sabres high, she made one single slash downwards towards the huge red rock.

It shattered like glass, shards falling into the soil, ringing whenever two pieces would clang together.

The mage collapsed almost instantly. "No..." she whispered.

"We had to do it, Zuri," said Cloud, still not knowing if she was in her right mind or not, "you were breaking the fabric of time and space. There already are pockets in the air itself that are holes to another place."

"You don't understand," the girl said softly. "I'm not quite sure what Jenova's intentions for that portal are...but I do know one thing. Without the materia, I don't know if there's any way on this Planet to seal that gate again."

* * *

Sean was walking along the outskirts of the ruins of his home. Burnt-out shells looked slightly less depressing when seen from a distance. The flames were long dead, but white smoke still billowed over the tops of the mighty elms where he stood. He turned away, not bearing the irony that a deed so terrible could produce anything with the purity of white.

A slight form suddenly stumbled into his side. "Oh!" cried out a small voice in surprise.

"Did you want to be alone, too?" He looked down into Marta's burgundy eyes.

"Well..." she twirled a chestnut curl around one of her fingers. "All the stuff I see in town scares me...and...Mama's reaction is just weirding me out. It's spooky here in the dark, too, though." She sighed a bit.

"Of course it does. Standing near a ghost town would disturb anyone."

The younger girl bit her lip in apprehension. "Oh gawd, I didn't mean it like that..."

"I know you didn't. And...you know, I'm just fucked up right now." He shook his head, remarking to himself about how he never used that sort of language. "Nothing or anything will set me off. Pick your favorite combination."

"Sean?" Her voice was nearly a whisper. "I have this weird rumbly feeling down inside me."

"What kinda feeling, Marta?"

"I don't think things are over yet."

He shrugged. "As long as that damn psychopath Patrick's running aroun—"

"No. I mean here. In Wutai."

A small shiver ran down his spine. "You're probably just—" His voice died as...he could have _sworn_ some shadow just passed across the glowing moon.

She raised a hand to her mouth in terror.

"What the hell was that?" He shook a fist at the sky. "Why would anything come here? Everything is already fucking destroyed!"

Shakily, she took his hand in hers. "But...we're still here, right?" She tugged on his arm a bit. "Sean...us...our parents...drawing attacks like beacons. And they're all sitting ducks, mourning a burnt down town!"

He glared at her. "What did you say?" The tone was a menacing, low growl.

"They'll die if we don't go warn them something is after us. The destruction of the town can't be reversed. And neither will the harm that flying thing is gonna do if they get ambushed."

"Oh." Startled by the rashness of his own judgment, he leaned over and embraced Marta as way of apology. "We have to hurry."

With a quick nod of agreement from Marta, the two of them tore back towards the shell of Wutai.

A few minutes later, the embodiment of shadow landed in the very spot the pair had stood. Sniffing a bit, gathering their scent in its nostrils, the creature blinked its blood-red eyes and released a blood-curdling battle cry into the breaking dawn.

* * *

(_I'm not sure where you came up with the concept that your life was going to be easy. Where would you be if you had contentment and solace? There would be nothing to strive for, nothing to achieve._

That's not the issue. The issue is whether or not it's right for a person to have to strive for sanity.

_There's a difference between experiencing hardships and creating your own. Maybe you shouldn't have been so self-deprecating._

And maybe as the voice of reason, you should have piped up a bit more often.

_Where did I have the chance? Between the fury and revenge, the sex and drugs, the corruption and deceit, the insecurity and begging, there really wasn't any room for me._

I'm too old for this.

_Then you should just lay down and die._

I can't look her in the face after this.

_Good thing that Raieyana is not the thing you need to protect the Planet from._

Me? I believe Patrick said it best when he said that I never really do anything.

_Oh you've done quite a bit. It's been very obvious this whole time that you've been part of this story from the very beginning. Just waiting until you completely realizing the fact to do something about it?_

Look, just because I helped protect the materia and Zuri doesn't mean anything, except that I was guilty.

_Considering the fact that it's in the nature of males to detest the offspring of other males, don't you ever wonder where the unnatural guilt came from?_

Adding more to the pile isn't much if the pile stretches an infinite distance.

_The pile disappears if you atone._

I'm beginning to learn that.

_Learning? Do you need any more information than that?_)

.

Reeve broke away from his internal debate. "Information?" he whispered aloud.

(_One who sees, one who burns...one who grieves, and..._)

"...one who learns." A flash of realization danced upon his features. Rushing down the sand dunes, he held his speed as Cosmo Canyon came into sight. He ran into Tifa's house.

Raieyana rose somberly as he entered the dining room, a tattered and folded letter in her hand.

Pausing for a moment, he caught his breath before he attempted to speak. "I think...I am the last of the four."

Unshed tears glimmering in her emerald eyes, her only reaction was to clutch the paper to her heart, slightly nodding.

"I... You might understand my recent...admissions. I am the one who learns."

Quiet for a moment, she simply took in the new information. "This," she whispered, "was like having him back. It's been so long...I can't forget what you said to me, but it's been too many years for me to even wonder about the what-ifs." A bitter half-smile crossed her lips. "Besides...if Ryald hadn't tried to kill me, I probably would have run off with him anyway."

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air, the unfortunate side effect of too much information.

"I have a strange feeling that Patrick managed to get his hands on Cloud and Aeris...and the materia."

Raieyana nodded. "Me too. I had Cid go get the Airship ready."

"This is it, then? I'm about to head off to the battle of ages, and that's it?"

"I'm just glad that for once, it's not me in the prophecies."

Leaning back, Reeve slowly closed his eyes. "I can go back to Junon or something after this mess. Don't even worry about upsetting your own life because I was a—"

A burst of laughter interrupted his self-sacrificing speech.

He peered at her with curiosity.

"Reeve." She kept her eyes fixated firmly onto the ceiling beam directly above her. "My son's losing his mind, my daughter's fooling around with a guy that raped me, and my other son's got a vengeance plan against his little brother. You may have contributed to the death of someone I loved, but that seems like ages ago. I don't need this. Not now. We can sort us out later. I'm not giving you up without a fight, though."

He was in shock. "Ray?"

.

Cid burst into the house. "Come on, you lazy jackasses, it's time to save the world."

The two of them exchanged sheepish looks and headed out the door.

"Get your behinds in gear, too, because I want to get home sometime before my son fucking graduates from high school!"


	34. Part 9: Demi-gods and Hungry Ghosts - C...

Part 9— Demigods and Hungry Ghosts

.

Chapter 34

.

One burst of lightning, then thunder crackled through the sky. The electricity hummed through the air, and Patrick could feel the hairs on the back of his neck begin to stand on end. "What have we done?" he wailed suddenly.

Azura, one hand pressed still to her temple, her face a grimace of pain, turned towards him, startled. "Pat..." was all she dared to whisper. She reached out her hand to him.

_"Fools."_ The voice reverberated, echoing through the rises and hollows of the land around them.

"What is going on?" Cloud glanced at his companions. "That one was outside us, right?"

Aeris shook her head. "No. Not yet!" Grabbing Cloud with one hand, and yanking her brother up with the other, she began to tug them away from the portal. Towards Midgar.

"We can't leave, Rissy. Do you think this thing is just going to disappear?"

"We can't fight it." Her expression was dark. "Not without the fourth. Don't you see? This is what was being spoken of in the prophecy."

(It's gone. She's gone. Where am I? What am I? What have I done?) Patrick looked around him in confusion. "She's not here anymore!" He glanced to the glowing gateway just behind him. A dark wisp of something—it looked like smoke, kind of—rose up to meet another wisp as it emerged from wherever the other end of the portal was.

"It looks like Jenova is the welcoming committee." Azura began to sob. "I'm sorry..."

"Zuri?" He turned back towards the small girl still kneeling on the ground. Crouching down next to her, he reached out a hand and caressed the side of her face. "It's not your fault, it's—"

Her gray, tear-filled eyes met his bright blue Mako ones. She shook her head softly. And everything came back to him.

"It's all mine." His voice was barely above a whisper. "I caused all of this." (All Reeve's fears were right...and he still housed a monster.)

"No!" she insisted.

Glancing at the portal with fear, Aeris caught a few forms slowly solidifying out of the corner of her eye. "This is isn't the time. Patrick...we are here for you."

The boy furrowed his brows a bit, but nodded.

"I don't know if we can make it, but if we have to make a stand, I'd rather it be at the foot of those mountains over there."

Then they ran.

* * *

A solemn atmosphere hung around the dim room. Heads bowed, hands clasped together, led by one voice speaking somberly. "May those we lost be guided to the holy plains by the evening star—"

Red XIII was leading a group of Wutaians in solemn prayer when a couple of interrupters suddenly burst in. "Sean... Marta?" He glanced up in shock and annoyance. "I would have thought you two would know better than—"

"There's something terrible coming," Marta gasped for breath.

"Here?" he asked skeptically.

Sean nodded. "I get the feeling something—or someone—wants to finish us off."

"But this village was razed—"

"We weren't," the young man replied matter-of-factly.

"Excuse us." The fiery creature nodded to the group of now panic-stricken villagers. "You do _not_ need to be scaring these people any more than they already are," he admonished the pair as they walked up to the next level of the pagoda.

"But we do," was his simple reply, "if what we are saying is true, then we need to get them up to safety and then worry about what's lurking in the shadows."

"Aeris would have warned us if the culprits had remained in the village."

"Red!" The small brunette's voice chirped loudly, assertive, if even for just this once. "I get the feeling that Rissy's hands are probably quite full at the moment. We have to take care of whatever thing is out there, and we have to do it on our own."

Looking at the staunch, serious expressions on the faces of the two "youngsters," the lion finally backed down a little. "Who do we have here with us, again?"

"Mama!" Marta smiled with surety.

"And my parents," Sean concluded.

Red XIII blinked his good eye in surprise. "B—but I thought..." He shook his head. "Raieyana...Kati...Ishmael..._Cid_?"

"They left a little while ago. There was a PHS call." The petite girl fidgeted. "You said you were busy and not to bother you."

"We have to think of a plan for..."

Sean looked down. "My mother knows the way into the fire caves. Let her lead the villagers back there. The sacred flame within Da Chao will protect them better than we could, all spread out."

.

"Protect who from what?" Tifa stood in the doorway of the pagoda, with Yuffie and Vincent right behind her.

"The people downstairs look..._extra_ freaked," Yuffie said, looking puzzled. "Is there something else wrong?"

"I'm afraid the children have seen something foreboding outside the village."

"_Children_?" muttered Sean indignantly.

Vincent glanced around the room. "Red, do you think there is a threat to the people here?"

"I'm not certain..."

"Nothing is certain!" Marta glared at them all. "But you're putting everyone in danger here, and we can't just sit around and debate whether we're in danger! Better safe than sorry."

Yuffie nodded. "I heard the part about the fire caves...but...what about the little bit of Wutai that's left? We can't just leave it to be destroyed by some thing that managed to catch us at a low point."

"I'm sure the rest of us can kill it," said Sean.

"Yuffie should not go alone," Tifa started, "so honey, maybe you shoul—"

Vincent peered at her. "With all due respect, Tifa...how much does your daughter know about fighting?"

"Mama trained me a bit in martial arts, and Red showed me about materia. I'm not at a very high proficiency level yet."

"Why do you ask?" Tifa appeared confused.

"How long has it been since you've fought, yourself?" he countered.

Her eyes narrowed in thought. "Well..."

He grimaced. "Just as I suspected."

"Marta's just a baby! She can't go out there and fight any better than I can," Tifa said protectively.

"Maybe so...maybe so...but let's say she fights equally, okay?"

A nod.

"She will heal faster than you, and you know so. Plus, your level head will really aid Yuffie with the villagers. Besides, as a final resort...I'd rather have someone with your experience back there to make a last stand."

She closed her eyes for a moment, thinking quietly before speaking. "Watch out for her," Tifa whispered, "she's never had to fight anything that could hurt her before."

"You have my word," Vincent swore.

.

"Well," Yuffie glanced around the room. "Tifa, the sooner we start up to Da Chao, the better." The two elder women left the room, and the four remaining companions began to prepare.

"If the thing is shadowy, will Holy help us?" Sean asked.

Cocking his head to the side in deliberation, Red XIII attempted to answer the question. "I'm not sure. There isn't really much we can do without an orb with..."

Marta quietly slipped a red materia into his paw.

"What's this?"

"It's from the Canyon vaults. Mama gave it to me last year to practice with. It doesn't do much damage, but I think it has Holy power..."

Slipping it into an armlet, the creature was silent for a few seconds as he absorbed the knowledge of the crystal. He gave her an approving nod. "This materia will summon Krishna...his spirit seems very powerful...and...peaceful. Even if it won't counter our mystery enemy, I have a feeling it will be most helpful." He removed it and placed it back into the girl's hand.

"I can't..." Marta began.

"Yes." There was an intense light in Vincent's eyes. "You need something to arm yourself with. Experience gives us a few tricks up our sleeves that you can't possibly have yet. Let this be your trick."

She nodded nervously.

"Let's mosey," announced Red XIII. The two from the younger generation couldn't comprehend why the statement amused their elders so.

Marta held back at the doorway to the stairs, and Sean turned to her. "You sure you want to do this? It's not too late for you to make it up to the caves?"

"I have to. Or they may come to Cosmo Canyon next." She quietly wiped a stray tear from her eye.

He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and the two of them continued out to face the last wisp of the flame that had scorched Wutai.


	35. Chapter 35

Chapter 35

.

_History repeats itself, they say._

_I don't wish to see it, if that is the case. Millennia of pain and anguish, suffering and trauma, those are the ages that led us to the point where we are today. Have I always played the same role? Am I nothing more but a typecast actor in the screenplay of life?_

_If I flub a line, can I stall the play?_

_This person that, at times, I despise being, is that the only person I can ever hope to be? All that the past and history has shown me is that I'm locked—immobile—in some unchanging mold. I...me...mine, and all I hold is the faded lessons from former transgressions._

_I am not supposed to have the one thing I want most. I—my hands, my thoughts, my ideas, my dreams, my fault, my stupidity–led us here. I led the Planet to ruin because I could not get over one tiny thing. It ruled my life then and has ruled over this one. Lord and master, and I am its menial fatalistic slave._

_Is there a green-eyed monster or is the monster really me?_

_I unlocked Pandora's Box. _I,_ alone. Yet...yet...I am supposed to be an aid in its closure. Are there any sutures for a laceration so old, so open, so curdled with disease?_

_There are lives when I killed him in utero. There are lives when the creature killed him. This life...I saved him, to bring him greater torment. He may have opened his eyes and seen his namesake, this time, but did it bring him pain? Did I break his back and let the devil creep in the back door?_

_I want to stand by his side and destroy all my folly has done, but will he even let me now? Is there time for healing?_

_If not, would it not be better to be destroyed than to live in a world where nothing changes? A place where a person dies a thousand times before he ever has a chance to live...one wonders for a moment if that is even a life worth living._

.

_I will lay my life down on the line. My life is merely that of a pawn, but he, he can break a mold that he has never seen. We all may be caged, but he can make us free._

_And I will help him best that I can._

_

* * *

_

_Fletus est in umbris,_ (1)

The chanting was radiating from the sky's hole, spreading out across the field. Aeris shivered at the cold, harsh words.

"That almost sounded like the Cetra's language," whispered Cloud.

"From the sound of it...my ancestors must have borrowed a bit from Jenova's speech."

_Et venimus. _(2)

The haze and mist that had been spewing from the portal slowly began to spin and turn, gathering into three areas. Slowly, these areas began to take on shape, the form of beings of some sort. Their material of substance became darker and darker, blacker than black.

_Videre, audire, et _(3)

_Perdere peccama._

A raspy voice whispered, over the Gregorian sounds floating through the air. _"To destroy the errors."_

_Lavate faviles lacrimis._

_"Wash the embers with tears."_

Each member of the group of bodiless spectres soon had bright, shining orbs where a human would have eyes. The light radiating from them was cold, and its glow was enough to make any observer soon ill. There was no sense of malice contained within the liquid depths, no, that would be tolerable enough. They were an abyss; a glimpse into them was a glimpse into nothingness: dark, chaotic, and cold.

Cold enough to make one's thoughts turn to absolute zero. A place with no warmth, would one even feel the chill as they turned to nothing?

_Incendite, incendite_

_Ignis in aquis._

_"Burn, burn_

_Fire on the water."_

"That sounds so reassuring," Patrick muttered, entering battle stance. He held his spear above his head, poised for attack. "On your mark," he deferred to Cloud.

The blond man held up a hand to hinder the boy, looking towards the forbidding figures with caution. "We don't even know if they'll become solid enough to attack."

_Incendite, incendite_

_Tempus egit_

_In nostras manes._

_"Burn, burn_

_The time has passed_

_Into our hands."_

The creatures slowly began to take form. Gray, silvery skin soon materialized to coat the bodies of shade. The eyes, however, remained unobstructed, unchanged; a warning to others that these beings may fashion themselves into whited sepulchres.

_Tenemus te_

_Tum necamus te._

_"We hold you_

_Then we kill you."_

One of the figures took this opportunity to grin. Toothless, mocking, and sadistic all rolled into one action.

Azura, finding this a bit too gruesome, kept her ground behind Patrick and buried her face in his shoulder. He spoke up, stirred by concern for her. "What the hell do you all think you're doing?" He hadn't seen any ears on those _things_, but they could speak a bit too well for something deaf.

_Puer, haec est res apud nos solum. Lude, et requiesce res. _(4)

One of the eerie beings turned towards him. The raspy voice returned. _"A lower level being like you can never hope to understand. This is merely a matter between us and our subordinate."_

A curious look came to Aeris's face. "Something tells me that Jenova might not have been following the parameters of her intergalactic mission."

_"From whence comes that name?"_

(An interrogative statement from those who had just dismissed us "lower level beings." Very curious.) Gathering up courage, she faced them with a fury. Suddenly, a string of words were whispered to her, as if a guardian angel were speaking in her ear. She repeated them with a vengeance. "Illud nomen est idoneum ei. Ea est calamitas caelibus. Jenn O' Vah." (5)

_"Curious. You are the only being we have met, aside from ourselves, to be able to change speech to the native tongue of your audience."_

"Habeo donum. _Omnia_ dona habemus." (6)

Cloud touched a hand to her arm. "Riss? They speak our language. This isn't necessary."

"It's necessary that they don't think less of us than we are." She addressed the mocking leader once more. "Omnia vestra dona et sanguinem Cetratem habemus. Lices habere fragmenta postquam cum ea pergamus." (7)

.

A hiss resounded through the air, and silence followed. Sheer, utter silence. There was neither wisp of wind, nor flap of bird's wing, nor tremor of earth. A battle cry emanated from the dark shapes before them. The raspy translation once again overlay the original message, but the hollow echoes that followed were in every tongue that had ever been spoken on the Planet.

_"Mortals...quake with fear, the time is here. Your sovereign is nothing more than a degenerate child. Soon you will know the true control of E' Sha."_

One of the "E' Shas" beckoned to the sky, a ball of flames forming in its hands. As it moved to throw the magic missile, Azura broke free from her group.

"No!" she screamed, eyes blazing. She glowed nearly completely green. The creature paused just in time to see the stream of blinding white she shot in its direction. She breathed in relief; the shades had been completely encased in a crystal of ice. Sinking to her knees, she gasped with exhaustion.

She hadn't realized the fireball had been given a new target before she trapped her enemies, and the ball of flames suddenly engulfed her. Patrick and Cloud ran forward to her aid, hoping that the temporary cage around the aliens was holding.

A soft whir distracted Aeris from joining them; she looked up to see the source of the sound. Tears of admiration formed in her eyes.

Azura had saved the Highwind from incineration.

* * *

(Latin Translation)

1. There is weeping in the shadows

2. And we have come

3. To see, to hear

4. Child, this is a matter solely among us. Go play, and give it a rest.

5. That name is suited to her. She is the Calamity from the Skies. Jenn O' Vah.

6. I have a gift. We _all_ have gifts.

7. We all have your gifts and Cetra blood. You may have the pieces after we are done with her.


	36. Chapter 36

Chapter 36

_._

_(Little girl. Sweet, sweet little girl. Do you want to end your pain, suffering, all in one fell blow? Just let me seep into you..._

I can't leave now...everyone's in danger. They need me. I am one of the four. You can't trick me this time!

_Has that measly little extra terrestrial gotten into you humans' brains so badly to where you can't trust anything that is inside yourself?_

I can't trust anything outside myself, either.

_Your friends are trying to bring you back, but they would fail if not for one small thing. Your pain, your loss of control, all these little things that do not come about in times of peace and happiness, you have now experienced. And those have awakened me._

Awakened...?

_I am your protector. In the beginning, there was only Chaos. But eventually, the heavens and the earth were born from it. I am Gaea, the child of destruction, and a spirit of protection. I will not let you fall._

How can we stop an army of creatures like Jenova? She alone, half-dead, has nearly destroyed us all!

_You saved your friends...and I will help you in your role..._)

.

Azura's eyelids fluttered open. A group of people, friendly, was gazing down at her with concern. (Aeris, Cloud, Patrick...) She sat up slowly. "Did my spell work?" Her voice was soft, insistent.

Cloud nodded. "It's holding for the time being, but it won't last forever." He eyed her in astonishment, for a red glow had surrounded her and her eyes blazed with an ethereal, yellow light.

"Is it too late?" A mournful, deep voice called out to them. Reeve was climbing down the rope ladder of the Highwind II.

"While we're all breathing, we've still got half a shot." Blue eyes blazing, Patrick very nearly smiled at his stepfather.

Aeris started to speak about a plan she'd been contemplating it. "Now, if us four are supposed to aid Patrick, then I expect we should be supporting him—"

Removing a sack from his back, Reeve untied a pouch containing the remaining two huge materia. Blue and green. "These have to be good for something..."

.

She felt weightless, lighter than air. Every nuance of the wind seemed to reverberate throughout her. She was of the sky, a bird perhaps, or the frosty edges of a cloud formation. The sunlight was warmth enough to spite the last futile gasping of the blowing storm.

(_You hold yourself so tightly, but it is I who am cradling the fragile form of an angel..._)

The whispers were still eerie and new enough, but somehow felt natural. Azura's feet slowly left the ground. All she could see around her was colored light, waxing and waning in tune to the tide.

Something..._something_...was calling to her, wasn't it? Or was that just the echo of the wind? Could it be Jenova straining for some last grip of control over a situation that had long ago spun past her reach? She didn't know, she didn't understand, all she knew is that she felt something begin to change inside her.

Azura fought. She refused to let herself go beyond her own mind a second time. Mentally wrenching and thrashing, there was to be no submission. She'd die first.

Die...

(_...all I want is to save you..._) The voice was less insistent now. Apparently, internal guardian spirits were used to people losing self-control when angry. This time, however, all the fury and the anguish were directed towards self-control. Anything threatening self-determination was the enemy. Forget about evil aliens for a moment, for such things do not matter if one cannot contain oneself.

It was still a bit odd that the girl was about three feet from the ground, but she was a mage after all, she thought to herself. (It's just my extra energy being displaced away from the situation.) A very sensible thought, actually, but...

(_...if you will not let me take care of you, let me help you..._

Help? There is nothing else on this Planet that can aid me now. I, like Asula before me, must use my powers for the greatest good. None else can come close to my gifts.

_You have no idea how right you are._) With that, the whispering presence seemed to disappear as suddenly as it had surfaced.

.

The icy prison of Jenova's kinsmen began to crack and shatter, but that horrific sound was nothing compared to the piercing cry of surprise—mixed with a _little_ pain—that rang from Azura's lips.

Her teammates, her comrades, turned to her quickly in fear. Had she been attacked? Were her wounds not healing properly? They were beyond all belief to find her nearly ten feet above them, hovering with the aid of two large wings covered with downy, iridescent feathers. Her skin was covered with markings, reminiscent of tribal tattoos, colored in vivid shades of pink, orange, and red. As she floated down to a gentle landing before them, they could clearly discern new, brilliant highlights of gold scattered throughout her long black hair.

Her pale eyelids fluttered open, revealing eyes whose irises had turned a glowing hue of fuchsia, and she held a palm before them in wonder. The marking on her inner wrist was clearly a flame; the higher wisps lightened into yellow, licking the base of her fingers and her mount of Venus. "I—I think I've reached what Daddy has described as a Limit," Azura whispered in a tone of amazement.

One more hideous crackle echoed through the land, and the crystal barrier holding back the battle of a lifetime was nothing more than dust melting on the earth.

* * *

"What do you _mean_ we're just going to stay here?" Ishmael's eyes were full of unshed tears and his voice held a timbre of emotion that had never before been present. "How can we just sit and watch? Dad...and Rissy and Zuri...Cloud..." His voice sank to a whisper. "Patrick? Mother, can _you_ watch your family die?"

Raieyana looked at him, her own eyes a testament to her distress. "It's not my choice to make. This isn't our fight, honey."

"We can _make_ it our fight, Mom!"

She placed a hand on her arm, trying to lead him off the deck. "Would you give them more worry and bother because you haven't the strength for waiting? We'd only get in the way."

"I'm not weak." His voice caught. He glanced to the doorway. When Azura had fallen, Kati had flown inside the Highwind proper. Even now, he could hear Cid ordering the pilot to fly to a distant bluff as soon as the deck was clear.

"Strength, in the end, can be irrelevant sometimes." Raieyana's eyes still gleamed wistfully at her son, but her mind was lost in a faraway glimpse of memory. "Some battles have predestined combatants. And so it goes down...Cloud and Sephiroth...Hojo and I...Patrick and Jenova." She bowed her head. "I wish I had more to offer you. There is hope at least...for if there were none, we'd be better off jumping from the deck at once."

Mother and son walked inside, and the airship flew to a safer distance. There would be a long wait for them.

But, as Raieyana mused, there was a time, once, where she'd sat on an airship deck waiting for an event of certain death. In comparison, waiting for an event of divine determination, bringing life to the Planet, was merely a nuisance of time.

* * *

The laughter was intense, derisive, and, above all, unnervingly nerdy. (In all seriousness) thought Red XIII (this mad scientist schtick is getting a bit old.)

Dirk Earlham sat atop a gigantic creature that was rather remarkable, mainly due to its look of doom, gloom, and irritating habit of sniffing the air around it. (Coke addict monster?) Vincent's thoughts had always tread close to absurdity under immense pressure.

"Tsk tsk, children," clucked Dirk. "You all look like you've been having a bad...life." More of the annoying laughter. "I'm here to cheer you all up!"

"Why do I seriously doubt that?" muttered Sean as he readied himself for battle.

Almost immediately, the creature reared up on its hind legs and sent out blasts of fire. White hot, more close to magma than flame, the searing balls soared right past the group of four and into the pagoda behind them. Earlham's maniacal laughter could barely be heard above the roar steadily engulfing the house of Leviathan.

"How _could_ you?" Marta yelled, daring to dart up to the madman. A quick series of blows was followed by a snappy flip back beyond the range of the beast's forelimbs. Apparently, when Tifa said "not trained," she meant in the sense of not having finished a course on par with Zangan's.

Sean had instinctively stuck out his arm to stop the reckless girl, albeit a moment too late. One swipe of a claw, then his flesh was torn. A burning sensation he'd never felt before was sending shockwaves of pain through his synapses. "Fuck," he muttered, falling to his knees.

"Marta..." Vincent's voice emerged as a low growl. "Prepare to use that materia if things start to look bad." An odd spark flashed in his eyes, and the air around him started glowing, seemingly of its own accord. Red XIII was able to cast a Cure spell on Sean, whose wound was slowly mending, but the measly spells coming out of Vincent's armlet weren't entirely successful at keeping the enemy at bay. They were closing in... The man who enticed Patrick to destroy Wutai. The man who was responsible for his son lying injured on the ground... The next sound to emerge from between his lips was nothing like language; it was guttural, bestial, and inhuman.

The transformation was beyond anything Marta's imagination could have cooked up. She'd been told stories before, that Vincent had demons inside him. Literally. The man she knew was weird, but not scary. Until now.

"Can he even help us like that?" she whispered, gaping at Chaos.

Even Earlham's steed looked warily at the beast. Then Chaos went for the lifeblood.

"Use magic," Red XIII urged. "We can target that thing from here without hurting Vincent."

Sean and Marta nodded. Their skills combined with brute strength and the rage of a demon were giving them an upper hand. Perhaps what was left of Wutai could be salvaged, after all.


	37. Part 10: Wheel in the Sky Chapter 37

Part 10— Wheel in the Sky

.

Chapter 37

.

Azura felt her stomach sink into her shoes. These beings were like nothing she had ever imagined. Hojo...Jenova...Sephiroth...these names were a pale presence in old stories of parental glory. The chanting continued, and an unknown force continued to tug at her, trying to bring her back under control. Her muscles tensed; her downy wings quivered.

"How do we kill them?"

Patrick's demand was met with blank stares.

"You guys were there with the prophecy. You all do know what we're supposed to do, right?"

Cloud sucked in his breath, blue Mako eyes tracking the aliens as they sized up their terrestrial opponents. "Oh god..." A shake of the head. "Zuri, containing _them_ didn't hold. Try getting a barrier up around _us_."

Reeve pushed the huge green crystal into her hands. "Can't hurt."

She tucked it under her arm and held out her other hand, palm facing out. Her brows furrowed in concentration as waves of light wove themselves together around the five.

One of the beings, the talkative one who instinctively seemed to be the leader, managed to shoot the group a toothless smirk. A beam of hot white lightning burst from his chest, hitting the ground right in front of her feet.

Seeing red, Patrick readied his spear for a full-on ambush.

"Wait," she whispered. "I'm going to…" Her brow furrowed in concentration, as her fingers grasped the crystal so tightly, it seemed she'd leave imprints. "_Wall_."

.

A large, glimmering barrier appeared directly in front of the E' Sha. If they had anything approaching actual faces, they might have been filled with rage. All Cloud knew is that he could not only hear their growls of anger, but _feel_ them. "We can't keep stalling for time—fuck!"

"So you saw another one come out, too?"

"The…" Azura's words deteriorated into gasps, due to the effort of keeping up the wall.

In a flash of inspiration, Aeris reached behind the smaller girl and pulled out the blue crystal. "Patrick. Don't move until our signal."

"Wha—"

"Everybody else, the blue materia. Make sure some part of you is touching it. Now… Cloud, take off your armlet and put it on top of it." She looked up. "If we do it together, the three of us, we should be able to clone a strong enough wall. Like this one."

Beads of sweat were forming on Azura's forehead, but she began to shake her head. "No, I can keep it up—"

"The Wall is for Patrick. You need to throw a Seal All spell towards the portal. It's our only chance."

"Rissy," her brother whispered, "I don't—what if Jenova—"

"You were born to do this, Patrick! I don't care what anybody else has said or done."

Reeve reached out with his free hand, grasping the shoulder of the boy he should have treated as his own son. "I believe in you. We all do."

"Don't look back," Cloud said. "You'll have the best chance when Zuri drops her Wall. Momentum and surprise."

Patrick closed his eyes. Always the prodigy. Always too strong, too angry. He looked out, scrutinizing the alien creatures who were pushing against their magical barrier. Testing for flaws, weaknesses. Waiting to hurt them all even more. Nothing in his life would have been the way it was, if it weren't for them. Rage bubbled within him and, for once, he embraced it.

"Zuri, _now_," he heard his sister scream, and he let go.

.

(_"Wait, child."_

The voice was as familiar as it was soothing. It wasn't Jenova, it sounded more like…

Mother?

_"Why not just leave the one you call 'Jenova' to us? She will be punished for being disobedient…and we'll set back this world to what is right."_

How?

_"By erasing every trace of our sister from this plane of existence. Starting with you."_)

.

A tendril of the E' Sha's smoky form reached out towards Patrick, coming into contact with the magical wall of Aeris, Reeve, and Cloud's casting. The metaphysical tremor jarred Patrick back into attention.

"No," he swore, eyes narrowing. He swung his spear upwards, and the protective glow around him arched around and beyond his weapon, shooting into the beings in front of him.

As they cowered, a reactive shriek reverberated throughout his body and mind. Still, they began to retreat towards the portal which, at some point, had ceased its expansion. In fact…

"Push them, Pat!" As Azura's voice rang out across the field, Patrick realized that the portal was shrinking. He reached down towards his favorite piece of materia, hoping that 4x cut would perform as well as it usually did.

Blow after blow fell upon the not-quite-solid _things_ in front of him. Though Patrick was concentrating with all his mind, pushing against them with all his body, he suspected that the only reason they were falling back was the contact each swing caused the Wall Barrier to make with his targets.

.

(_"It's not enough. It will never be enough. She will always remain here, unless you subject to us."_)

The voice no longer sounded like Patrick's mother's. It was dark and unworldly. Every blow forced them closer to the dimensional door, but the voices never ceased the taunts.

(_"We do not forget. We do not forgive. And we do not die."_

Just a little further…)

The final E' Sha form was halfway through the still-shrinking portal.

(_"As long as the smallest part remains to breathe, we will come for it. Your blood…"_)

.

Several things then happened at once.

.

The portal slammed shut around the final tendril of the final E' Sha.

The final tendril shot towards Patrick's left arm and, instead of meeting the resistance of the magical Wall, actually made contact.

The blue master materia held between Aeris, Reeve, and Cloud split down the middle, releasing a cloud of energy into the air, as the casters collapsed to the ground.

Patrick dropped his spear and, instead, grasped one of his sabres in his free hand. "Then take it."

And suddenly, the entire portal was obscured by a cloud of blue-green energy and a red tint that was, unmistakably, blood.

.

"Pat!" Azura wailed. Preparing to cast a curative spell on him, the huge materia in her hands suddenly split as the other crystal had, not a moment before. Another cloud of energy made its way from the crystal—from _her_—and she sank to her knees in exhaustion. A type of exhaustion she'd never quite known before now…

"What is that?" Reeve rasped beside her.

"What is what?" Cloud was panting and nearly writhing on the ground.

"It reminds me of…Holy."

"It's not Holy." Aeris had struggled to her feet as she watched the haze gathering around them, past them, towards what was left of the portal. "It's Jenova."

"Jen—" Cloud scrabbled at the ground, finally using the assistance of Aeris's hand to rise to his feet. "Holy fuck, it's coming from everywhere."

"From every_one_," she corrected, her voice strangely calm. The mist, which had been trickling through the remains of the portal, had finally begun to dissipate. "Zuri. Just a little push more."

The mage nodded, and her eyes closed. One small blur of green energy shot towards her target, and an ear-splitting crack rang out.

The portal was closed. The E' Sha were gone. The four of them felt drained to their very core.

.

Patrick lay beneath the former location of the portal, unnaturally still.


	38. Chapter 38

Chapter 38

.

"No." It couldn't be real. And those words certainly were not coming out of his mouth. "No." Reeve had been the last to stand and the first to see… He had been the first to make it to where Patrick was lying.

The flashes of cure spells passed over a still form. No response.

"Wake up, dammit!" He blinked furiously. "Stop being so stubborn—"

"Reeve."

Cloud's hand was gripping his arm, but he barely registered it.

"Reeve, stop. I tried a Full-Life before you even made it over here. I—" His voice cracked as he saw his pain mirrored in the eyes of his longtime adversary and ally. "I think you need to pull it together, though. For Zuri."

For Aeris was helping the smaller girl stand. Supporting her shaky legs as the two of them made their way over. Azura's wings had disappeared; she'd exhausted herself long ago. Glints of the glyphs still shimmered below the surface of her skin, like magical scar tissue.

"Pat?" She knelt down, brushing crusts of dried blood from his face.

Cloud was about to go sit beside her, when he felt a hand grip his own arm. Aeris had made her way between him and her father. "Let's give her some time. I'm sure the Highwind will be here before too long."

The two men, shell-shocked, allowed her to lead them away, back to the shoreline. Shards of materia crystal, red, green, and blue sparkled in the light. The sun was breaking through what was left of the storm clouds.

"Do you know…something, Rissy?" Cloud implored.

"Just that…I'd want…time…if…" She swallowed, brushing a falling tear from her cheek. She choked. "I should have seen _something_. We were there to help him and…"

"We did. It's just…sometimes it takes…sacrifice." He wrapped an arm around her. "I know it hurts, but—"

"He never had a chance, never had a choice." Aeris's voice became determined. "There's got to be…something, somewhere."

"I have only once in my life come across a way to defeat death that was not utterly horrible," Reeve said quietly. "And we used it. Used it up entirely. On your mother."

She nodded. She knew the stories; she just didn't want to believe the conclusions. After all, if her parents had known everything there was on the Planet, everything that was to be, none of this would have happened in the first place, right?

An increasing whir overhead indicated that the Highwind was on a return trajectory back towards them.

"What are we going to tell Mom?" Aeris whispered.

"That Patrick is free. That we all are," Cloud whispered back, as she buried her face in his shoulder.

* * *

"I knew you could do it." Her voice sounded so small, it was pathetic. She took a deep, albeit shuddering, breath. "You were always too strong for your own good." That was better; it was no good sounding so weak next to him. But then the tears started to land on his face, his peaceful face…

This just wouldn't do at all.

"I'm sorry I wasn't as strong as you. I'm sorry I didn't seal the portal fast enough…didn't fight enough to…" Her voice failed her entirely then, and Azura buried her head on Patrick's still-warm chest, crying steadily.

She hadn't been aware of the others leaving them alone until she heard Reeve's words carry over on the wind.

_"Only once…a way to defeat death…used it up entirely…"_

She sat up, suddenly. It had never occurred to her to try. White and black materia were two sides of a mysterious coin, part of old family and Planet legends. (Why even bother, Zuri, you're not even a millionth-part Ancient…)

"But Pat _is_," she whispered.

(It took you weeks to figure out how to teleport.)

"If I do this…I don't need to figure out anything else again." Azura knew that she had to at least _try_. She reached down for Patrick's hand.

"There's still Ancient blood in you, I hope, after that mess," she whispered. In her head, she tried to picture the old story. It was like a fairy tale, after all. Patrick's mother had been dead. Killed with her own sword, filled with all the materia…

(Renew…Spirit…Holy…Mercy…Hope…Faith…)

Green tendrils of light wrapped around the two of them, caressing their skin with warmth. But Patrick did not stir…and Azura was beginning to lose her grip on her magic. "Come back," she begged. But…

There had been something dark in that spell that had brought back Raieyana. The crack of force and destruction to tear through to that space beyond and bring her back.

"Please forgive me," she whispered, as she sank down into darkness.

.

(Her parents were accusing Pat of being dangerous…Benjamin was threatening to kill…Patrick was holding a sword in his hand and advancing on Ryald…a meteor was hurtling through space on direct course for the Planet…

A strange man, tying her mother to the holy mountain…Cloud ripping Pat's mother's nightgown…a girl about her age, with ice blue eyes, praying in a cavern…a man in a lab coat stealing a baby…someone shooting her father in a basement…Patrick was burning down Wutai…)

.

A loud scream broke free from Azura as the entire plain was obscured in a crack of bright light.

* * *

Three things happened simultaneously for Reeve: the airship ladder dropped down in front of him, he turned towards Azura's blood-curdling scream, and he was temporarily blinded by the brightest flash he'd ever experienced.

"Wh-what?" was all he could manage as he tried to blink away the spots burned into his retinas.

Raieyana managed to maneuver down the rope ladder and began running towards Azura, who had collapsed on top of Patrick's body in a heap.

Aeris had her head cocked to the side, as if listening to a voice only she could hear. "She heard you, Dad. What you said about bringing people back."

"But there is no more black or white materia…" Reeve's voice trailed off as his vision cleared.

"She doesn't need materia, not really. It just helps," Cloud murmured.

.

Raieyana stilled before the forms of her son and his friend. She could see movement, which meant that someone had to be breathing. Kneeling, she reached out to Azura and gently lifted her up.

The girl stirred, confused for a moment before recognition gleamed in her eyes. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I just had to try…"

"Try what? Now's not the time to worry about cleaning up a single cut, no matter how messy. You're exhausted—I think your limit spirit tried to break back out of you again."

"Cleaning up a cut?" Azura struggled against Raieyana's firm grasp. "You don't understand, Pat's—" Her eyes fell on Patrick's body. His still face, slack fingers just beyond the sabre that had fallen out of them, his chest—rising and falling. Patrick was _breathing_.

"He'll be fine, you'll see." She could tell that Raieyana was making an effort to calm down what seemed like obvious hysteria.

"He was dead," she said, numb. "And I…" She looked up.

"You need some rest. There will be time to think about it later."

"But—" The world grew hazy around her, and the last thing that registered in Azura's mind was Raieyana's hand pressed against a green orb in her armband. (Sleep spell…)

* * *

The room was quiet, unnaturally so, without Aeris's typical chatter. Instead, she sat silently at Patrick's bedside. Wearing a faded pink shirt and jeans, golden hair pulled back into a braid, she was a divine vision to Cloud.

"I thought I'd find you here."

She glanced up, meeting his eyes. "He hasn't moved in two days, yet I'm afraid if someone isn't here every waking moment… We'll finally wake up from this delusion."

"I take it you aren't getting any helpful sight in the matter?" He sat down next to her, a familiar companion to her vigil.

Aeris paused a moment, eyes darting up to contemplate the sunset through Patrick's window. "I always was…blessed with good intuition," she replied, "but somehow I get the feeling that my magic information overload is over. Whether it's because Jenova is gone or the Planet's stopped screaming, I've no idea."

"I suppose," he began cautiously, "the way to ground ourselves that it's not a delusion is…to be realistic."

"He's not even stirred."

"So, the worst case scenario is Zuri nearly killed herself and couldn't quite manage the entirety of the magic."

"And we'd never know if it's was because it was too much for her, she couldn't quite grasp the spell itself, or…" Aeris was silent for a moment. "Will we ever know how much of our power came from Jenova, how much came from the Planet, and how much was just our own?"

"If we accomplished what we were supposed to, what we were prophesized to do, I'd say the latter two options are one and the same, Riss."

She nodded. "But we'll probably find ourselves aging naturally after all this, I'd say."

"Unfortunately for us old farts," Cloud quipped, earning a playful slap.

The conversation hit another lull, and the two sat watching Patrick's comatose form. His chest rose and fell, but the rest lay motionless.

.

"What are you going to do, Cloud?"

"What am I—"

"After this?" Aeris turned back to face him.

He leaned back, eyes searching the ceiling as if it contained his answer. "I don't expect anything from you, Riss, and I've got to get back—"

"—to your chocobos?" She interrupted, incredulous.

"They're domestic, they can only fend for themselves for so long, you know." He shot her a wry grin. "After they're done up for a little longer, maybe then I'll have to reach a decision."

She nodded. "My mother wanted to know if I'd take over her training classes. She and Dad need to get away for awhile, and I get it. And I'm sure Patrick…" A swallow. "If he gets—_when_ he gets better, he'd help. He's always been good at that sort of thing. I guess he was made for it." She fidgeted nervously. "But, I was thinking, the best of training can't make up for a lifetime of experience, so if…you don't _mind_ living with someone more civilized than a chocobo—"

Cloud wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "I don't know if that's such a good idea. I'm so used to merely warking to communicate and—"

"It's Undor-Hai, Cloud, it's not like we're really civilized or anything!" She bit her lip. "Besides, it'd solve your _other_ problem."

"What other problem?"

"They've been short chocobos for the past few years. You seem to have an abundance that training classes might leave you less time for…"

"Why are you so persistent? It's maddening."

Aeris leaned forward, kissing him softly. "Because you need somebody persistent." A smile.

"Perhaps." He found himself smiling back. "We…we'll discuss it more thoroughly. Before we get Patrick's hopes up too high." He nodded at the form on the bed.

"It wouldn't be nice to disappoint him now, would it?" She whispered.

"Come on."

Her hand felt warm in Cloud's, as she let him lead her towards the door. As they left, they found themselves face-to-face with her father.

.

"Any change?" asked Reeve.

She shook her head.

"I'd like to sit with him, if I may." It'd taken two days to work up the nerve to ask something he shouldn't need permission for, but…

"Why would you ask, Dad? Of course." Aeris laid an encouraging hand on his shoulder.

"I've no right. And I doubt my face is one he'd want to see when he wakes up."

"You might find yourself surprised," she whispered, before laying her hand in the crook of Cloud's elbow and allowing him to lead her away.

Leaving Reeve alone in the doorway. A few steps forward, and he was alone with Patrick. He sank slowly into one of the chairs, eyes never leaving the boy's face. "Why not me, instead? There's no one less deserving of another shot…no one more worthless than me."

But there was, of course, no response.


	39. Chapter 39

Chapter 39

.

Quite some time had passed, all a daze for her. The first moment of coherency came as her room slowly began to darken again. The sun was setting, and Azura was awake.

She eased her body up, sitting against the headboard of the bed. She glanced down. Someone had taken the liberty of dressing her in a lightweight, cotton nightgown. It was black, and she wasn't sure if it was something that she'd acquired in her weeks of depressed solitude, or if it were a sign…

The door cracked open slightly, revealing the worry-lined face of her mother. "Sleeping Beauty awakes, eh?"

Azura nodded. Had she even gone to the eastern continent, or had it all been a dream? She glanced down at her hands. Though the color had long departed, there were still the ghosts of markings running all the way up her arms. So… (It was real. The E' Sha were real…I opened a portal to…freaking _hell_…and…) She looked up in a panic. "Where are we? How'd I—"

"Your room at Raieyana's, honey." The bed dipped as Yuffie lowered herself onto it. "Cid picked you all up in the Highwind, I don't know if you remember it arriving, but—"

"Yeah. I trapped them in ice before they could destroy…" Her voice trailed off. "How long have I…?"

"Well, it's been a couple of days. You woke up here and there, but you…were very tired." Something in her mother's eyes glistened and threatened to overflow, but all she did was pat Azura's hand. "You did so much. We're very proud…and grateful, but mostly, proud."

Reality had seemed to merge and dissolve with something else since the moments before the E' Sha Portal had opened. What was real…what was a dream…

Yuffie's eyes met her daughter's, full of concern.

"What hap—where—" Her syntax deteriorated into one syllable. "Pat?"

"He…didn't wake up—"

"No!" Azura cried, tearing the sheets from herself. Trying to stand, as her limbs fumbled in their disuse.

"—yet!" Yuffie's hands went to her shoulders, firmly holding her down. "He's…unconscious."

Her chest heaved up and down. Agitated, she continued to struggle.

"You haven't been much better yourself, Zuri, and you arrived in much better shape than he did."

"I must have screwed it up!" Tears fell from her eyes, and she stilled for a moment. Her mother sat back, momentarily relieved. "I've got to see him!" She suddenly tore from her bed and rushed for the door, stumbling.

"Zuri, wait!" A stunned Yuffie tailed her daughter.

* * *

_The night sky had been filled with a million stars. Even in Undor-Hai, there had been remnants enough of Midgar's pollution to obscure more distant galaxies from view. But it was not so, here._

_Patrick reclined on the roof of a treehouse. It wasn't his family's large one, or the makeshift one he'd made out in the forest on his own, but it was strangely familiar to him. He laid back, stretching his arms to rest them behind his head, when he remembered_—

—_but the gash in his left arm was no longer there. Not even a mark was left._

_"Funny," he said to himself, "even Cure doesn't patch things up that fast."_

_Granted, now that Patrick thought about it, he couldn't remember just how long ago he'd sliced himself open…_

.

_"There's a reason for that, you know, kid. Weak becomes strong, parts made back into the whole, all that jazz." A red-haired man, sloppy, with bright eyes, called up to him from the ground. A man who looked oddly familiar…_

_"You!" Patrick leapt to the ground and made to draw a weapon. That's when he realized he was unarmed. (But I'd never be out in the wilds without…) Shaking off the panic, he straightened out his body, exuding a bodily threat. "You're the one who attacked Mother. I thought I _killed _you."_

_"Technically, you're right, _and_ then you're wrong." The man squinted up at him in the darkness. "Apparently, you killed my clone."_

_"Your what?" Granted, now that he _thought _about it, the man in front of him seemed a bit older than the gentleman who'd been divested of his head a few weeks prior in the living room. "But…"_

_"Look, some lunatic thought it'd be a good idea to clone me and send the guy to your mother, it's a long story."_

_Patrick staggered back with a sudden realization. Her mother had a stone in the memorial for him. Reno. "You're…still a dead guy, though." He looked around him._

_"Since you were a couple of days old, kid."_

_"Where am I?"_

_The trees were still; no breeze passed through them. Try as even a skilled tracker like Patrick might, no animals could be heard. The two of them were utterly alone._

_"Where am I?" Patrick repeated, suddenly sounding like the young teen he was._

_"Guess you could call it a holding area of sorts. Religious dudes like to make up names for this sort of thing…limbo, purgatory…"_

_He continued to gauge his surroundings. There was no life in this place. There could be no life in this place. (I'm dead.) It was a startling realization, but it had to be right. He glanced at his intact arm. (So that's it, then. I'm dead. I suppose the others aren't here to meet me because either they're _not dead_…or…)_

_The red-haired man—Reno—gazed at him appraisingly. "You've figured it out, haven't you?"_

_Patrick nodded. "I'm going to hell," he spat._

.

_A few moments of silence passed, the two men just staring at one another. Then it broke._

_"What the fuck?" Reno shook his head. "No, you idiot, you're not going to hell."_

_"I cut off your head!"_

_"My very deserving _clone's_ head, in defense of your mother, a very lovely woman_—"

_"I burnt down…an entire town, killed many villagers, just to screw with Zuri's mind!"_

_"Hello, you do remember that you were being possessed by the evil alien incarnate you were _born _to take down, right?"_

_"I forced the girl that I _love_ to open the gates to a dimension full of more of those evil alien incarnates. Not only that, but—"_

_Reno grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him—hard._

_"Stop it!"_

_"Shut up and listen for a second!" He shook his head. "Fuck's sake…I told the elders that I shouldn't be the one they sent to do this. Send Aeris, she's friendly and a relation, I said. Send Deline, he's gotten stupid good at this communication with the mortal realm thing, I said. But no, you cut off my clone's head, and suddenly they decide I'd be the e-fucking-pitome of reassuring."_

_Patrick stood stock-still, stunned at the outburst._

_"Look, kid. You've got friends in high places. The Planet's long done producing materia. Especially of the huge and/or pure white kind. So you'd think sacrifice-resurrection, _khazed_, or whatever those geezers like to call it, would be right out. But your girlfriend's pretty powerful, and the powers-that-be are inclined to acquiesce to her pleading…that or they're concerned with her current ability to possibly rip the fabric of space-time apart."_

_"Wait, what?"_

_"The elders don't have much issue with reincarnating the same souls to doomed missions over millenia, apparently, but they've gotten a little tired of the fact that you keep getting killed before the rest of them every time you get incarnated. They've come to believe it wasn't quite fair."_

_"I'm still confused—"_

_"You can't stay here, you gotta go back—"_

_"—I only _just _found out I was dead, and why would I argue—"_

_"—even though it's technically against the rules, it won't hurt much, because there will be no more Jenova superhumans—"_

_"—it sounds a shit-ton better than _hell_!"_

_"—so we probably shouldn't waste any more time talking about this."_

.

_One would think the dead would have no need to stop to catch breath, but neither one of them was up to saying another word without a short break._

_"This doesn't make any sense!" Patrick fumed._

_"That, my dear friend, is how you know that it's not your time!" Reno grinned. "After you really die, you understand everything!"_

_"You do?"_

_"Yep." He slung an arm around Patrick, leading him through the treeline to a cliff-face vaguely reminiscent of a side of Mt. Crist. "One more thing. Can you do me a favor?"_

_"How can I—"_

_He continued obliviously. "Now, not right away, it wouldn't help out one fucking bit, doing it right away, but…if you'd be so good as to wait awhile after your folks get back from their business trip to Junon and send my love to your mother."_

_Patrick's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "My moth—"_

_"Thanks a ton, kiddo. It was nice meeting you, but we'll have lots more time to play catch-up once you're actually dead. Totally forgive you for the clone beheading thing."_

_"I—"_

_His attempt to respond was interrupted once again, this time by Reno physically tossing him off the side of the cliff and into the ocean._

.

_Patrick sputtered, despite the fact that he honestly hadn't been breathing—and didn't think it weird he hadn't—before he sank below the surface._

_His arms cut through the current, propelling himself upwards through the dark waves. However, the surface did not approach as he expected. In fact, it seemed like the further he ascended, the deeper he was…fathoms deep…_

_Was he ever going to breach the surface?_

_

* * *

_

His eyelids felt like lead weights; his limbs, gelatin. There was a soft-static ringing in his ears, obscuring _someone's_ voice.

"…wouldn't ask you to do it for me…couldn't expect…but…for _her_…"

He moved his head towards the voice, which continued on.

"Please, I know you love her very much." A stifled sob.

.

Patrick's eyes fluttered open, recognizing the top of the head now bent over next to him. "Hey, Dad." His voice was barely above a whisper, but it was heard.

Reeve's head jolted up in shock. "Hey, Pat."

In the brief quiet, neither realized the other had each used the address they'd abandoned for the past five years.

.

A strange look crossed Patrick's face. "We're…alive, right? Not in hell?"

"Well," Reeve replied dryly, "it's felt like it the past few days, but we're still in the land of the living."

A weak smile for response.

"I should find your mother." He made to get up.

"Wait." Patrick's voice was hoarse, but he forced it to be audible. "Wait, sit for a second."

Reeve settled back down into the chair. "Okay, Pat." A pause. "Is it okay to call you—"

"'s fine." Another weak smile. "I just—I just want to say…sorry…I tried to torture you."

"Patrick, I knew it wasn't—"

"Part of me was angry enough…I could've fought it more…"

"You surpassed anything that could have…should have been expected of you." Reeve swallowed. "It—everything—never could have gotten as far off course as it did, if it weren't for how I treated you in the first place."

"I never made it easy…"

"You never should have had to. I was the adult. You were the child. I was supposed to care for you, guide you, protect you. But I was such a coward…"

Patrick struggled for words. "No one's…you never had to…give understanding to Jenova. 's okay."

"It's not! Patrick, it's not, and I am sorry!" He shook his head. "I've never been a _good _man. Never tried hard enough to be, not as hard as I should have. But I knew…where the rage…the violence came from…because I fought it myself. And I was too afraid, too insecure, to be what you needed me to be. And, in my foolishness, I could have killed us all. I _did_ kill you."

His eyes met Reeve's remorseful ones.

"Don't say it's okay. It'll never be okay. The only time I even had a slim excuse to be so angry is when your mother fell ill, and my worry something was wrong with Ray should have never been explained by thinking it was caused by something wrong with _you_."

"I cut a guy's head off…"

"Pat, I would've done the same damn thing. It's the worst part. I've been a useless fucking hypocrite—"

"Dad…"

Reeve was silent.

"…let's just try. Make it okay. All the bad's gone now, right?"

A nod. "Just…I think, maybe…Cloud _is_ your fath—"

"Cloud's Cloud. And you're you. And me an' you…still…" His voice became sure. "Aren't we?"

"Family?"

A nod.

"Of course."

At that, Patrick smiled again, eyes closing.

"_Now_, I'm going to get your mother." Reeve stood quickly and turned for the door.

.

Just in time for Azura to trip across the threshold and fall on the floor in a heap. "Patrick?" Her eyes shot up, meeting the pair in the bed that had suddenly opened again.

"Still here, Zuri. Right here."


	40. Chapter 40

Chapter 40

.

Azura sat on the porch swing, idly rocking back and forth. Her eyes were on the Undorian forest in the distance as she enjoyed the warmth of the late spring evening.

"Almost feels like déjà vu," said the voice behind her.

"We'll have lots, then," she laughed. "I still like the swing."

Patrick walked around her and made himself comfortable, slinging an arm around her shoulders, wincing as he did so.

"We should do this the other way." She tried to get up, but he held her in place.

"I'll have to get over the soreness sooner or later. I'll ease into it by cuddling first, then by swinging a sword at you in sparring practice tomorrow."

Azura giggled.

A grin tugged at his lips. "I take it that means your plans are going to be favorable to me?"

"Well…" her voice trailed off, teasing.

"Out with it, Valentine."

"Mom and Dad are leaving in the morning to go try and rebuild Wutai. I…don't quite get it. Between the…'fire' and the giant fire-ball spitting monster that followed, I can't see how anything salvageable is left."

"Leadership roles lead to feelings of responsibility, or so I have been led to believe by my sister." Patrick waggled his eyebrows. "But they said it was okay for you to stay here while they do this rebuild, then?"

"I didn't exactly ask," Azura muttered. "I told Daddy that's how it was. I helped save the world, I certainly think I can decide whether I want more training afterwards."

He brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "Babe, you guys have to make up at some point. Even Reeve and I—"

She waved a hand. "He's just as stubborn as I am." She gave Patrick a small smile. "But I think I see him cracking, so I just have to last just a little longer. Besides, he's the one who really owes me the apology, don't you think?"

He leaned back, rocking the swing a bit more violently. "Far be it from me to get into a disagreement with a woman who can disintegrate the very fabric of _reality_…"

"Pat!" She slammed her feet down, stopping all motion, and looked at him imploringly. "I—I'm right, though, aren't I?"

"Zuri. I have no right to judge you in this either way. But all I'm going to tell you is that your dad did what he did for no other reason than out of love for you. Actions of far worse motivation have been, can be forgiven. You know?"

She bit her lip and nodded, sinking back into his embrace, as he started the swing to moving again.

"Granted, at some point I hope one of us has the stones to make that argument to Ishmael. He's breaking poor Rissy's heart."

"He's just having trouble understanding things have changed. Why they have, and whether or not it's really anybody's fault. It's hard to be on the outside."

Patrick nodded. "Maybe, someday, he'll let me tell him about it."

* * *

Raieyana shook the dust from the rug, then slapped it down across the rail of the back porch. The house in Junon had laid dormant for almost fifteen years, but something had kept her and Reeve from selling it.

(Almost like, somehow, we knew we'd be needing it again someday. Hardly expecting it to ever be for something like this…)

"This" being practically abandoning their Undor-Hai home in a rush, a mad desire to find a bit of neutral common ground. To rebuild something, rebuild everything.

.

"It'll be hard," Reeve said, walking through the doorway and into the night, "but I think, with my help, Alcor can get back to something sane and reasonable."

"It's amazingly fortunate for them you're willing to be so hands-on."

"I'm a little concerned with your plans for passing the time here. I know how much you enjoyed training."

Leaning back on the railing, Raieyana threw a scornful look back at the house. "I don't think you've realized how big of a job making this thing livable's gonna be."

He took up position next to her, shoulder against shoulder. "Mmhmm, and once you've finished that up sometime next week…"

"I suppose I have a book that I could rewrite into some publishable form…add more bits and pieces of prophecy…give some concrete explanation to all of Soldier's experiments as to why they've gone insane over the years and impotent, as of late." She flashed a wry smile. "Besides, I seem to recall deciding to have date nights and potentially entire days spent in bed."

"Dates, what are those again?"

"Apparently, an important part of relationships that we just sort of…skipped."

"The unhealthy codependence is kind of our thing."

She reached over, grabbing his arm and tucking herself in underneath it. "No matter what we've screwed up, in the end, we made it through because of and in spite of the other. We just have this small obstacle of living the rest of our lives without killing ourselves or others, and it'll be a perfect relationship."

"The kids'll be thrilled. Speaking of which…" Reeve paused. "Patrick had something to say to you before we left?"

"Seemed like it. He had some sort of…experience, otherworldly." Raieyana wasn't quite sure how to explain it. Her younger son had pulled her aside, ostensibly to have someone to discuss his glimpse of the afterlife. The obvious choice would be the other person he knew who had experienced something similar.

.

_"It was so short, so confusing…and I had expected to be there alone, but…"_

_"Did you recognize the person there with you?" Raieyana asked._

_Patrick paused, appearing to search the ground for the words he couldn't find. "Not really." His eyes met his mother's, seeking… A shake of the head. "I suppose it's something I really have to sort out for myself. Like the thing with you and Dad."_

_She smiled. "Speaking of…when did '_Dad'_ happen, anyway?"_

_"You told me to call him that when I was in diapers, remember?"_

_"And at least once a day since you stopped calling him that, if memory serves…"_

_He wrapped his arms around her, the first active hug he'd given her since even before Reeve had stopped being "Dad" to him. "It's shitty what it takes to gain some perspective, but now that I've got it, I think I'll keep it."_

_"Your father and I…"_

_Patrick nodded. "I get it. Rissy gets it. We'll leave the light on for you, try not to burn the house down, or have too many parties."_

.

Raieyana tried to hold back the tears forming. "I think he just…needs to make right what he can. None of us can take back what we've done, but we can try and make the future better."

"We will," Reeve swore, tightening his embrace.

They remained out among the stars, steady and sure like that night at the villa so long ago. Perhaps forever wasn't _so_ impossible, after all.

* * *

For not the first time since the sun had set, Aeris wondered if she had been foolish to believe Cloud's easy promise that he'd return. She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to stave off the night chill as she peered through the tree line. There was only so far she could go out towards the open without calling attention to herself or the Undor-Hai trail.

(He's spent the last decade-and-a-half as a _hermit_, for Planet's sake! Did you honestly think that a few weeks spent with _you_ would make him crave human contact when he despised it for so long?

He has a PHS. I'd think he'd at least call me if he changed his mind.) She sat back down on a fallen tree that she'd been nervously revolving around during her entire wait. (Unless he was afraid of facing me, hurting my feelings…)

Suddenly, she heard a chattering in the distance. It began approaching, soon ringing into a veritable cacophony. The haze of the shadows obscured all but an outline of a man leading a chocobo by the bridle.

"Goldie," she heard a soft voice murmur, "can you get the rest of this circus up the mountain?"

The bird warked in response, setting off an echo of mimicry. Suddenly, the bridled bird began trotting up the mountain, ignoring anything resembling the trail. A strange thunder followed as a train of birds followed the lead.

The man broke through the trees alone, feet headed towards the near-invisible path with assurance. He immediately found himself face-to-face with Aeris.

"I had pretty much decided you weren't coming after all." Her voice was an accusation.

"Ever take a herd of chocobos across the ocean?"

She shook her head. "Seas too rough to make a phone call?" She crossed her arms, petulant.

"Riss, I was in the zone." He began to walk, but she didn't move. "Wait, are you angry that I _did_ come?"

"Wait a sec," she jogged a bit, catching up to him. "It's not that, Cloud…but I was waiting an awful long time for you. I just started expecting the worst while hoping for the best. And I was just so ready to be mad at you…" Aeris grabbed his arm. "I needed a moment to stop being angry."

"I was going to say, that's an interesting way of being appreciative of my lifestyle change."

"I just don't have enough self-confidence yet to quite believe that you'd be willing to do all that, because I asked."

"It was beyond time for me to rejoin the world again." Cloud flashed a wry smile her way. "Don't be afraid that I'm going to run away at the slightest kink of things…this is something I need to be doing, for myself."

Aeris paused. "That's good. All of a sudden, it's like I've nothing left I can count on. Everything's changed."

.

He stopped, resting his hands on her shoulders. "Things will be different, but I don't see how that's all bad. Your parents and Patrick were doing better, last I knew…"

"My parents are all sketchy with us and each other and will be away for who knows…could be a week, could be forever. Patrick's a whole new person, and even if it's most definitely for the better, it's still not what I know…"

"You're not your parents or Patrick, honey, and—"

"He hates me!" Aeris burst into tears. "The most important person in my life, who was always there and understood everything, hates me!" She took a shuddering breath. "And it's not just that, he hates Patrick, he hates Mom, Dad, everybody…everybody who's not his precious Kati. Everybody who won't let him wrap himself away and take the easy answer to explain everything away."

"I never had a brother, let alone a twin. I can't begin to understand the bond you had…but what I do know is that he has to be missing you just as much as you miss him."

"He has a funny way of showing it! Swearing that he'd never want to stay under the same roof as Patrick again, and that he'd not ever be interested in coming home until Wutai was back the way it was."

"I know what it's like to feel left out of something big, something huge, Rissy. And while it may feel like he's abandoning everyone he loves for one person… He wasn't with Zuri and Patrick in the wilderness. He wasn't with you or I when we fled with the materia. And he wasn't down on the plains by Midgar with the E' Sha. He didn't see or feel the things we did."

"He'll never understand, then?"

Cloud brushed a tear from her cheek. "He doesn't understand now, but he will _want_ to, someday. Because he loves you. And when that day comes, I hope you'll be there to help him understand. Because you love him."

"How'd you get so get at this?"

"Funny thing," he said softly, "I just recently met someone who showed me that there's always someone. To listen, to understand, and to help change things for the better. To stand beside you at the darkest hour, and lift you up at the first light."

"Oh," was all she managed before his lips came down on hers for a crushing kiss.

.

The moon was high in the sky before they broke apart.

Aeris rested back on her heels, smiling. "You'll have to introduce me to this wonderful person, someday."

Cloud shot her a dirty look. "It appears like it may be a difficult feat. You see, she has no idea she's so special."

She smirked. "So, it'll all be okay?"

"If we try our hardest, it can be." He took her hand and began leading her further up the mountain. "And I will."

"You will?"

"I will."

.

.

.

.

**THE END**

.

.

.

* * *

A/N: Many years ago, a young girl began her first foray into fiction with a mediocre fic starring an OC that may or may not have been a Mary Sue. The supporting cast of characters may have helped disguise that fact a little, and the fact that the writing was technically competent probably didn't hurt.

It led into a more ambitious sequel, which wasn't quite as rushed or bad. Then the series laid dormant for awhile. Eventually, a bit of nagging and a spot of creativity began the third installment of the trilogy. She continued to steadily work on the trilogy for about a year or so, getting steadily closer to the end. There was one small problem: the story didn't have an ending, yet.

So the story sat dormant for what could be considered an eternity, in internet time. Other stories were written, other hobbies were picked up and put down, but the lack of ending to the story that started it all nagged at the back of her mind. Occasionally, old readers/fans would find her in other places and ask what had ever happened to the story, and she'd have to regretfully say, "I don't know."

And then one day, it just happened. The story came to completion. Six thousand words poured out in a very short period of time. It was done. There could be closure for everyone: author, readers, characters.

While the story itself is likely due for a bit of an editing job, to at least mesh the writing style of the past with the writing style of the future, anyone who happens upon this will now finally know just what happened. I hope the anticipation hasn't made it entirely a disappointment.

On a little bit of a technical note, 's parser seems to have gone way overboard and stripped certain things out of past uploads, rendering them unreadable. I am updating every chapter of this fic so it's legible and will go back and do the others in the trilogy somewhat soon. They will be updated with revised versions, as well. The revisions were done quite some time ago, but I felt that it might be disappointing to go get them all posted when I still didn't have the end finished yet.

It's not exactly what I had envisioned when I began the tale. The first story didn't immediately make me think trilogy, and I began the third installment with a rough idea that Patrick would murder both of his fathers (which quickly was thrown out), but I am satisfied with the whole of the tale as a full-cycle.

So, I am at what could be considered a stopping point for this particular universe. I don't plan to completely quit fic writing: I am slowly picking the story Tarnished Side back up, and I think there are more turns to add to the E Pluribus Unum cycle. I think there are small fluffy bits and vignettes I could return to this 'verse in. I'm a bit intrigued by the childhood that I skipped and alluded to here. But, if I need to, now I can walk away.

I hope anyone waiting for this considers it a piece of closure, too.

Thank you to anyone who has read and supported this story or anything of mine. I apologize for leaving you hanging, if you've been waiting. I hope that, in the end, you enjoyed the ride.

—Quinkie


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